The Pitt Meadows Fire Department is lauding the quick thinking of two individuals after a stove top fire was put out within a minute of the sprinkler system being activated in a condo complex.
Tuesday afternoon just before 5 p.m. firefighters were called to a commercial structure fire at the corner of Harris Road and 119 Avenue.
It was in actuality a multi residential fire, said Biggin, in one of the units on the fourth floor.
The resident of the unit attempted to put out a fire on top of the stove but was unsuccessful, the deputy chief explained. The person then ran to the neighbour for help who immediately grabbed a fire extinguisher off the wall in the hallway and put out the fire. They also pulled the alarm to evacuate the building.
“It could have been so much worse,” Biggin said. “They literally saved a lot, a lot of damage,” he said.
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If the sprinkler head went off on the fourth floor, Biggin explained, not only would the water filter into neighbouring units, it would have filtered down into the third, second, and first floor units as well.
Water damage would have been in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, he said.
But, because of their quick thinking, there was no smoke damage or water damage. The resident only had to clean up after the use of the fire extinguisher.
“Luckily it was just limited to the stove and some minor damage to the microwave.”
“I praise both the tenant and the neighbour for clarity in their thinking ,” said Biggin. “They mitigated significant water damage and significant spread of the fire.”
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