Sheffield Sofa Warehouse Saved by Sprinklers
A fire at the Sofa Traders warehouse in Sheffield was suppressed by an automatic sprinkler system, helping the fire service to extinguish the fire, preventing any further damage and allowing the business to be operational the following day.
The fire broke out in the loading area of the premises on Richmond Park Road at 11:45am on Thursday, February 10th with five fire crews from the South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service attending the fire. The sprinkler system contained what could have been a potential major fire and ensured it was only a minor convenience.
Emphasising the effectiveness of the automatic sprinkler system, the South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “The fire started behind some roller shutter doors in a loading area behind the shop, but because the premises had sprinklers fitted the fire was contained. Therefore, what could have been a very big fire was in fact over quite quickly.”
The fire at Sofa Traders in Sheffield is in stark contrast to a fire in May 2021 at a unsprinklered, three storey furniture warehouse in Bradford which had a very different outcome. The blaze in the Legrams Lane area of the city required more than 100 firefighters, 18 fire engines and four aerial ladder platforms from the West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service. It brought significant disruption to local businesses, the evacuation of nearby residents and forced the temporary closure of a local primary school. While no one was injured, the business faces an uncertain future, employees face job relocations and environmental health is threatened.
The inclusion of a sprinkler system can prevent major financial and equipment losses, containing what could be a potential major disaster and turning it into a minor inconvenience. Proven time and again with consistent reliability, it is a small price to pay to prevent a business’s hard-earned success from going up in flames.
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