Sprinkler saves in Minnesota-Save at Hibbing Community College cited

During the early morning hours of March 25, a fire occurred in a semi truck parked in the shop area of the Diesel Mechanic’s Program at Hibbing Community College. The shop’s sprinkler system kept the fire contained and prevented major damage to the college. “As we saw at Hibbing Community College, sprinklers can be very effective at limiting fire damage,” said Minnesota State Fire Marshal Bruce West and Minnesota Fire Marshal Supervisor Jon Nisja. “Rather than experiencing a significant loss to its building and a major disruption in its ability to teach students, the college is operational after some relatively minor cleanup. Without sprinklers, Hibbing would be experiencing a substantial loss to one of the community’s assets.” According to West and Nisja, Minnesota experiences about 70 sprinkler saves each year, that equals about one every five days. Within the last week or so, there have been three sprinkler saves in the area, including apartment sprinkler saves in Hibbing and Grand Rapids. From 2004-2016, the Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s Office reports 920 fire sprinkler saves in the state. “Each of these sprinkler saves represents someone’s building being saved, someone’s business being protected and more importantly, someone’s life being spared,” added West and Nisja. The graphic below illustrates where sprinkler saves have occurred.