State fire marshal encourages home sprinkler installation
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 2 months AGO
Fire sprinklers like these can save lives and property damage when installed in a home.
MICHAEL RANDOLPH/THE BAY CITY TIMES/TNS
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | June 27, 2025 1:00 AM
MOSES LAKE — They’re in commercial and industrial buildings everywhere you go, but fire sprinklers are still a rarity in homes, where they could save lives, according to a statement from the Washington State Fire Marshal’s Office.
“Home fire sprinklers are designed to activate individually, targeting only the area affected by fire, which minimizes water damage,” Fire Marshal Chad Cross wrote in the statement. “They can be seamlessly integrated into new constructions or retrofitted into existing homes.”
They can be, but they seldom are.
According to a study by the Fire Safety Research Institute, fewer than 11% of all single-family residences are equipped with fire sprinklers. Only two states, California and Maryland, require sprinklers to be installed in new residences, although the Washington cities of Olympia and Redmond have adopted such ordinances, according to the fire marshal’s statement. A significant part of the reason for this is that not all domestic water supplies can provide enough pressure and flow to support the system, the FSRI study found.
Data from the National Fire Prevention Association indicates that a home fire sprinkler system can result in a substantial reduction in fire-related deaths and considerably less property damage. According to the American Fire Sprinkler Association, the cost of installing sprinklers in a new home constitutes about 1% of the cost of construction, about as much as new carpet.
The SFMO recommends installing sprinklers for these reasons:
• Life safety: Sprinklers reduce the risk of fire-related deaths by up to 89%.
• Property protection: A sprinkler system limits fire damage, often containing fires with just one or two sprinkler activations.
• Environmental impact: Sprinklers use significantly less water than fire department hoses, reducing water damage and runoff.
• Cost-effectiveness: Average installation costs are approximately $1.35 per square foot in new constructions.
• Insurance benefits: Many insurance companies offer premium discounts for homes with sprinkler systems.
For more information, contact the State Fire Marshal’s Office at 360-596-3904.
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy National Night Out scales down
QUINCY — Quincy’s National Night Out was more compact this year, which worked out well, said QPD Sgt. Joe Westby, who’s in charge of event planning for the Quincy Police Department. “National Night Out is a big event, and the fact that we’re able to shrink it up is like a breath of fresh air,” Westby said. “If you're always doing the same thing, it's kind of nice to switch things up and see how it works.” National Night Out took place Thursday on the block of C Street next to the police station, a shift from previous years when it was held at Lauzier Park. The smaller space meant fewer emergency vehicles for children to explore, but it also meant less walking for attendees. Grant County Fire District 5 brought a fire truck, and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office had a patrol boat. Renew, the Grant County behavioral health agency, had a booth and so did Quincy Partnership for Youth. Veterans Operation Creation sang the national anthem, and the Quincy Animal Shelter brought kittens that piled over each other making friends with passersby. As before, the QPD served grilled hot dogs.
Quincy Police retirements leave big shoes to fill
QUINCY — There are some big shoes to fill at the Quincy Police Department. “We’re losing 48 years of experience between them,” Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said at the retirement party for Capt. Jorge Trujillo and Det. Damon Powell Thursday. Trujillo, who grew up in Sunnyside, has been with QPD for 19 years, he said, coming on as a patrol officer fresh out of the military. From there he served as a field training officer, a detective and finally captain. “I consider him my left-hand man,” Green said. “He runs the operations side of the house … He knows the agency very well, and he knows the community.” Trujillo has some projects around the house to tackle now that he’s retired, he said.
Big fun on a small scale
Wheat Land Communities’ Fair opens Thursday
RITZVILLE — The Wheat Land Communities’ Fair isn’t as big or as flashy as some of the county fairs around central Washington, but the folks who keep it going like it just the way it is. “It’s somewhere you can go and get an old-time traditional feeling, and you’re comfortable letting your kids roam the grounds and experience all that it has to offer,” said Board Member Lori Williams. “It’s more of a feeling than (one) specific thing,” The fair starts Thursday in Ritzville and runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, the 56th Ritzville Rodeo will take place alongside the fair at the rodeo grounds. This year the entertainment budget was expanded, Williams said, to be able to offer more fun that’s covered by the cost of admission. For the kids, there’s face painting, balloon art, Lego crafts, races, contests and games. Children can also ride on a little train towed around the fairgrounds behind a tractor.