Ameristar vehicle fire damages multiple vehicles

At 1:18 a.m. Sunday morning, a report of a vehicle fire at the Ameristar parking garage was called to 911. The Vicksburg Daily News live-streamed the fire.

A smaller SUV had caught fire in the engine area. The two vehicles on either side of the SUV also received damage from the fire.

Ameristar parking garage fire. Photo by David Day

Battalion 1, Tim Love, was in charge of the scene and used the built-in fire suppression system in the parking garage, a dry system, to get water to the fire. A similar fire in January of this year destroyed 3 vehicles.  It took firefighters some time to get water on that fire. A training exercise was conducted at the South Parking Garage by firefighters shortly after that event.

The VFD was able to get water to this fire on the fourth floor much quicker than the vehicle fire in January.

The fire suppression system

The fire suppression system at the Ameristar parking garage is a dry system. A series of pipes run from the ground up to the top of the parking structure. If a fire occurs, firefighters connect to a hydrant and run a hose to a pumper(a firetruck that can stabilize the water pressure, usually 150 psi). From there, they then run from one of the outlets on the pumper to the inlets on the ground floor of the parking garage. Then they fill the pipes with water. That process takes several minutes. Once there is enough water and pressure in the lines they can connect a hose near the fire and deliver water to the fire.

In this case, you can hear the water line being pressurized just before the 7-minute mark in the live video.

The pipes deliver water to the hoses. Photo by David Day

Trapped in the elevator as it filled with smoke

A man who claimed to be the owner of the white vehicle next to the destroyed vehicle reported to the Vicksburg Daily News they inhaled a lot of smoke in one of the elevators. The man claimed he was on the way to retrieve his vehicle when the elevator stopped, trapping him inside as the elevator filled with smoke from the fire. The man asked for medical attention and was assisted by first responders on the scene. His current condition is unknown.

Responding to the fire were …

Engine 6, Engine 7, Platform 1, a fire medic unit, and numerous patrol units with the VPD along with Battalion 1, Tim Love responded to the fire.