NFPA Journal - November/December 2020 - 46

Large-Loss Fires in
the United States in 2019 (continued)
million to the structure and
$5 million to the contents.
INDUSTRIAL
Texas
Month, Time of Alarm, Dollar
Loss
July, 12:33 p.m., $30,000,000
Property Characteristics and
Operating Status
This fire was in a onestory, 1,500-square-foot
(139-square-meter) electric
generation plant of protected
noncombustible construction.
The plant was at full operation.
Fire Protection Systems
There was an automatic detection system present, but the
kind, coverage, and operation of
the system were not reported.
Suppression equipment was also
present, but the type, coverage,
and operation were not reported.
Fire Development
This fire broke out when a part
failure (of unreported type)
ignited flammable materials.
Contributing Factors and
Other Details
The loss was listed as $20 million
to the structure and $10 million
to the contents.
Washington
Month, Time of Alarm, Dollar
Loss
March, 7:07 p.m., $16,000,000
Property Characteristics and
Operating Status
This was a one-story, 30-foot
(9-meter) high, 35,000-squarefoot (3,252-square-meter) fruit
processing and storage facility.
There was no one there when the
fire broke out.
Fire Protection Systems
There was no automatic detection or suppression equipment
present.
Fire Development
The cause of this fire was undetermined, as several scenarios
could not be ruled out. The fire
broke out on the outside of the
building under an awning where
pallets of cardboard boxes were
wrapped with plastic wrap.
Contributing Factors and
Other Details
The loss was estimated at
$8 million to the structure and
$8 million to the contents.
Virginia
Month, Time of Alarm, Dollar
Loss
February, 7:42 p.m., $10,250,000
Property Characteristics and
Operating Status
This was a one-story energy
production plant-which used
methane gas from a nearby landfill for energy-with a transformer.
The plant was operating at the
time of the fire. The ground floor
area and type of construction

were not reported.
Fire Protection Systems
There was no automatic detection equipment or suppression
equipment present.
Fire Development
The cause of the fire was an electrical failure (type not reported) in
a machinery room.
Contributing Factors and Other
Details
The loss was estimated at
$250,000 to the structure and
$10 million to the contents,
including the transformer.
Ohio
Month, Time of Alarm, Dollar
Loss
May, 7:04 p.m., $10,000,000
Property Characteristics and
Operating Status
This was a one-story transformer
at an electrical substation. The
size and capacity were not
reported.
Fire Protection Systems
No information was reported.
Fire Development
No information was reported.
Contributing Factors and
Other Details
Media reports indicated that
mineral oil was burning and the
fire department let the fire burn
itself out.

The combined loss for the five fires in manufacturing properties was $1.2 billion. The
manufacturing properties included petrochemicals, adhesives, casket manufacturing, metal
refining, and vehicle parts assembly.
The four industrial properties included two
power generation plants, one electric substation,
and a fruit processing facility. Their combined
losses totaled $66.3 million.
The three warehouse fires had a combined total
loss of $35.1 million.
A restaurant explosion and a coffee shop explosion caused a combined loss of $56 million. In
addition, a fire in a vacant restaurant resulted in a
loss of $10 million.
The office property fire resulted in a loss of $14
million and the fire in the hotel under construction resulted in a $15.5 million loss. The oil and
gas field fire was a $16 million loss.
Four fires occurred in wildland properties, with a
combined loss of $432.2 million, and four involved
vehicles, with a combined loss of $79.3 million.

SPECIAL PROPERTY
Texas
Month, Time of Alarm, Dollar
Loss
July, 11:48 p.m., $16,000,000
Property Characteristics and
Operating Status
This fire was on an oil/gas field.
No additional information was
reported.
Fire Protection Systems
No information was reported.
Fire Development
The fire was caused when a lightning strike ignited flammable/
combustible fuels.
Contributing Factors and Other
Details
The loss was estimated at $1
million to the structure and $15
million to the contents.
Alaska
Month, Time of Alarm, Dollar
Loss
January, 5:10 a.m., $15,500,000
Property Characteristics and
Operating Status
This was a four-story,
20,804-square-foot
(1,933-square-meter) hotel of
unprotected wood-frame construction that was still under
construction. The site was closed
for the night.
Fire Protection Systems
There was no detection system
present. There was a partial
coverage wet-pipe sprinkler
system present, but it was not yet

Investigators at the scene of a manufacturing
facility in Massachusetts that was destroyed
by a fire in March 2019. The five large-loss fires
involving manufacturers in 2019 accounted for
$1.2 billion in damages. GETTY IMAGES

46 | NFPA JOURNAL * N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 0

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NFPA Journal - November/December 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - November/December 2020