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Drencher System Saves Lancashire Business From Fire
March 31
Credit LFRS, Image taken from a drone capturing a major fire involving concentrated amounts of plastic stored in the open external yard.
Matthew Hamer Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service Head of Prevention, Protection and Road Safety
“The presence of an automatic fire suppression system significantly influenced the outcome of this incident, as fires continue to be a leading cause of commercial property loss. This incident required substantial effort from firefighters to prevent a major external fire from spreading to the primary building.”
“The building was equipped with an external drencher system, which assisted firefighting tactics and prevented the fire from spreading to the building. This incident demonstrates how an automatic water suppression system enhances the resilience of buildings and businesses against fire impact, playing a crucial role in preventing major losses and ensuring safety.”
“Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service support that automatic water suppression systems play a significant role in reducing the impact of fire on people, property and the environment along with reducing the risk to firefighters.”
Introduction
Significant and costly fires can be prevented through a combination of fire strategies, one such strategy is the use of Automatic Water Suppression Systems (AWSS) which can contain and control or in some cases extinguish a building fire before the arrival of the Fire Rescue Service. (FRS)
This case review demonstrates that incorporating Automatic Water Sprinkler Systems (AWSS) as part of a comprehensive fire safety strategy can offer long-term protection for businesses by reducing the consequences of extensive fires. This improves the resilience of buildings and businesses against fire damage.
This incident reported by Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service (LFRS) involving an external fire on an industrial estate provides further evidence that the inclusion of an AWSS, in this case a drencher system protecting the external facade of the primary building can assist in suppressing an external fire preventing major financial losses, minimizing the wider impact of unmanageable fires, reducing costs to business and the economy.
The Premises
Industrial building with associated outbuildings, external storage facilities protected by AWSS consisting of a premises drencher, commercial sprinkler system.
The Incident
In March 2025, LFRS were mobilized to a well-developed fire involving concentrated amounts of plastic (Polypropylene, a highly flammable material) stored in the open external yard area adjacent to the primary building on an industrial estate. At its height 50 firefighters, 10 Fire Appliances, 2 Aerial ladder platforms (ALP), a firefighting robot, high volume pump were required to contain, control and extinguish the fire.
Concerns were raised by LFRS that the intense and radiated heat from the fire, with temperatures recorded as high as 700°C, could spread compromising the primary building housing further materials with a high fire loading. Due to the intense heat, firefighters were initially unable to approach the building to apply firefighting medium until the fire had been contained, controlled, and extinguished in the external yard.
The manual activation of the buildings drencher system served as a crucial line of defense protecting the building’s exterior surfaces, particularly walls, roofs, windows, soffits and facia boarding, from radiated heat and direct flame impingement from the fire. These systems can employ medium-velocity spray nozzles or specially selected nozzles for a uniform distribution of water over the protected surface.
The presence, operation of the drencher system provided a crucial time frame for the incident commander to implement an operational tactical plan to establish a 300mm water-main via high volume pump to establish a water supply to tackle the fire with firefighting media.
Two aerial ladder platforms were used as water monitors, in addition to main jets to contain, control and extinguish the fire to prevent it from spreading to the primary building. Due to the extreme temperatures the building sprinkler system operated which had the benefit of wetting the building and reducing the temperature within the building.
Image credit LFRS
This image shows a thermal/standard image allowing you to appreciate the intensity of the fire and its proximity to the primary building. At this point, the fire temperature adjacent to the building was recorded at 700°C.
The benefits of the drencher system prevented the fire from spreading to the primary building despite the lateral elevation of the building cladding sustaining substantial fire damage because of radiated heat although this heat did transfer internally, it did not cause the fire to spread to the interior of the building with smoke damage reported within the building.
Due to the intense heat from the fire the building sprinkler system operated which had the extra benefit of cooling the temperature, wetting the contents preventing further fire spread. LFRS are currently investigating the cause of the fire.
Conclusion
This incident provides further evidence of the benefits of AWSS as part of a package of fire safety measures.
- Preventing major financial and equipment losses for businesses.
- Protecting critical elements of its operation, in this case saving the primary building from fire.
- Providing valuable time for FRS to implement an operational tactical action plan to extinguish the fire.
- Reducing the impact of major fires, allowing FRS to maintain normal operations, allocating resources to other emergencies.
If it was not for the drencher/sprinkler system, we could be reporting on another industrial fire where the premises was lost to fire with the business facing an uncertain future.
The Business Sprinkler Alliance report that in the year 2021/22 the FRS attended a total of 1,842 industrial fires, fires do not discriminate whether it is a factory, car park, warehouse of office fires happen on a regular basis and will continue to do so in the future.
Fires are indiscriminate, occurring in various settings such as railway stations, factories, car parks, warehouses, and offices. They are a recurring occurrence and will likely continue to do so in the future.
Regardless of the cause or the building, systems like sprinklers can contain and extinguish fires, safeguarding lives and businesses during critical times when they are most needed.
Further Reading.
- Sprinkler Saves Review 2023/2024
- Sprinkler Saves Summer Update No 6
- Efficiency and Effectiveness of Sprinkler Systems in the United Kingdom: An Analysis from Fire Service data
- Business Sprinkler Alliance
If you want to make a difference working in the fire sector, we need your assistance
To make sprinklers the norm and not the exception – we need the evidence. Encouraging FRS and those in the sprinkler community to promote, collate, report sprinkler activations to Sprinkler Saves UK which will help to create a central and comprehensive record of fire incidents where sprinklers played their role in containing/controlling or extinguishing the fire. The outcome of which will influence policy makers in government for change advocating the use of AWSS in all buildings, we are concerned about.
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