Apartment Fire In Canby Prevented By Residents, Sprinkler System

CANBY, OR — A potentially catastrophic fire at an apartment complex in Canby was prevented with help from the apartment's sprinkler system and its tenants, according to Canby Fire officials.

The fire reportedly began on the third story balcony of an apartment at the Willamette Grove, 1802 N. Pine St., on July 26. When Canby Fire crews arrived around 1 a.m. they found the apartment's renters had extinguished the flames themselves.

“Without the fire sprinkler system this fire would have grown before we arrived and would have caused severe damage to the structure and displaced several tenants," Canby Fire Capt. Nikki Hietschmidt said in a statement. "All the safety devices working — smoke alarms, fire sprinklers and properly placed fire extinguishers at this apartment complex — made a difference tonight."

Three adults were at the apartment when the fire began: two tenants and a visiting family member.

The tenants told fire investigators they woke up to find their balcony engulfed with flames, which were reportedly moving up the side of the building and into the eves.

When the fire started, it set off an "automatic flow alarm," Canby Fire Division Chief Todd Gary told Patch. The alarm alerted Canby fire crews to the emergency and set off the apartment's sprinkler system — which woke up the apartment's residents.

The fire suppression sprinkler system did its job preventing the fire from growing too large before the tenants could grab a fire extinguisher from the complex's common area, Gary said, noting, "If it had gotten into the attic and eves, we would have had a totally different fire."

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After grabbing the fire extinguisher located outside their apartment door, the tenants returned to the balcony and finished snuffing out the flames — saving their apartment and belongings themselves.

"Everyone stayed home that night," Gary said. "That's what's most important."

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