Burst water pipe triggers fire alarm at River Park Square

A burst sprinkler pipe at a downtown Pottery Barn store led to evacuations Monday evening at River Park Square.

Spokane firefighters responded to the mall around 4:50 p.m. after a fire alarm went off, Assistant Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said. They discovered a burst water pipe near the store.

When a sprinkler is activated, the system assumes there’s a fire in the building and automatically triggers an alarm, Schaeffer said. Firefighters from two stations responded and were able to shut off the water.

He said the pipe rupture was likely caused by changing temperatures.

The mall was evacuated for about 30 minutes while firefighters responded.