Firefighters agree that
residential fire sprinklers could have saved a pregnant woman who died in a
Nebraska fire in late 2006. The woman, whose due date fell on the same day she
died, passed out from smoke inhalation soon after a faulty electrical cord set
her mattress on fire. Her two-year-old daughter was trapped within the apartment unit,
and suffered critical injuries.
The smell of smoke woke a neighboring couple late that night. They checked their own apartment unit thoroughly, and found no fire. Then they went into the hallway and followed the smell to the woman's apartment. They managed to get the door open. Smoke and flames poured into the hallway, and the couple could hear the two-year-old crying inside. While the woman rushed to call 911, the man tried to enter the apartment and save the little girl. But the smoke was too thick--even with a damp cloth over his mouth and nose, he couldn't see well enough to find her.
Residential fire sprinklers handle fires like this every day. If residential fire sprinklers had been installed in this building, a sprinkler head would have activated the moment the fire started, extinguishing it before it could do serious harm. In cases where bedding catches fire, and even when people's clothing ignites, residential fire sprinklers have been able to suppress the fire quickly enough to save victims' lives.
The smell of smoke woke a neighboring couple late that night. They checked their own apartment unit thoroughly, and found no fire. Then they went into the hallway and followed the smell to the woman's apartment. They managed to get the door open. Smoke and flames poured into the hallway, and the couple could hear the two-year-old crying inside. While the woman rushed to call 911, the man tried to enter the apartment and save the little girl. But the smoke was too thick--even with a damp cloth over his mouth and nose, he couldn't see well enough to find her.
Residential fire sprinklers handle fires like this every day. If residential fire sprinklers had been installed in this building, a sprinkler head would have activated the moment the fire started, extinguishing it before it could do serious harm. In cases where bedding catches fire, and even when people's clothing ignites, residential fire sprinklers have been able to suppress the fire quickly enough to save victims' lives.
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