Sprinklers credited with keeping Mount Prospect fire under control

Mount Prospect firefighters are crediting an automatic fire sprinkler for keeping a shopping center blaze under control until they could arrive and extinguish it.

The Mount Prospect Fire Department responded at 2:37 p.m. April 26 to a report of smoke in the building at 1701 W. Golf Road. As firefighters entered the building to investigate, they encountered moderate smoke conditions and located a fire in a portable sauna unit. The smoldering fire was extinguished at approximately 2:50 p.m., according to the fire department

The fire appears to have been caused accidentally by an electric/mechanical malfunction of the portable sauna unit, the fire department reported.

Without an automatic fire sprinkler and fire alarm system the loss to the business could have been significant, fire officials said. However, the damage was estimated at $10,000 and the business was able to reopen Monday. Other businesses within the shopping center were not affected by the fire and were allowed to remain open.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, fire sprinkler systems have a success rate of over 96 percent. The Mount Prospect Fire Department works with owners and occupants to ensure testing is completed on an annual basis. The Village of Mount Prospect requires all new construction to be protected by automatic fire sprinklers.