According to a report prepared by Jayne Fingerman Johnson, Timothy Downing and Kristen C. Nelson from the Department of Forest Resources at the University of Minnesota that examined the Ham Lake wildfire experience with the sprinkler systems as one component of wildfire preparedness, demonstrated that the systems, when properly installed and maintained, can be extremely effective in protecting not only the built structures but also the trees and vegetation within the sprinkler area.
It’s important to note that the Ham Lake wildfire was a fast, wind-driven, early spring fire that exhibited extreme fire behavior at various levels of intensity: low to moderate, and several areas of high intensity. With the possible exception of one structure that burned that may have had an active sprinkler system, no structure with a functional sprinkler system was lost to the Ham Lake wildfire. This was true regardless of fire behavior, intensity, surrounding fuels, or wind.
