City of SeaTac, Wash. September 6, 2013 – A late night fire in a hotel laundry room could have been much worse than it was if it had not had a sprinkler head in it.

Firefighters were called to a hotel in the 17300 block of International Blvd. S. at 11:49 last night to investigate a report of an automatic fire alarm.

When firefighters arrived, they were notified by a security officer of the fire in the first floor laundry room. As they approached the laundry room, firefighters found smoke that went from floor to ceiling. They could also hear a sprinkler head that had been activated due to the heat.

While firefighters from SeaTac dealt with the fire, others from Tukwila evacuated the hotel guests from the building. The North Highline and Port of Seattle Fire Departments also responded to the fire.

The fire was quickly extinguished and everyone let back inside.

Sprinkler systems are mandatory in many buildings and help control fires until the fire department arrives. The movement of water through the sprinkler system pipes after a head activates is what sets off the alarm.

The fire is under investigation.