Fire at Royal Oak DPS Slowed by Sprinkler System

Fire at Royal Oak DPS Slowed by Sprinkler System
(C. Proxmire, Oct. 20, 2015)
Thursday evening Royal Oak Fire Department responded to a call for a fire at the Department of Public Service yard.
Mayor Jim Ellison wrote about the fire on his Facebook page, stating “We had a fire at the DPS yard this evening. No injuries and no building damage that we can see, but we did lose one of our dump trucks.
“The building and the rest of the fleet were saved by the fire sprinkler system. I need to clarify that this fire was fought by and extinguished by the ROFD. The building was totally full of smoke when the firefighters entered and the location of the fire was discovered by fire personnel using heat seeking equipment.
“My point on the sprinkler system is that it slowed the spread of the fire sufficiently to allow ROFD to do the job they are trained to do so well. My thanks to them for all they do. RIP oh noble snow soldier.”
Mayor Ellison confirmed this morning that the fire was contained to one vehicle.  He said there may be smoke damage to others, but he believes only the one truck was destroyed.  ” ROFD  did a great job of putting the fire down and saving the building and other equipment,” he said.
The Fire Chief was not immediately available for comment, though this story will be updated as more information is available.
The benefits of sprinkler systems have been well-documented, including by demonstrations in Rochester Hills and Ferndale.
Watch video of a side by side burn demo with a sprinkler system at https://oaklandcounty115.com/2013/11/22/burn-demo-shows-value-of-residential-sprinklers-video/.

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