A spectacular fire at a Farmington gas station earlier this week somehow did not result in anyone getting hurt or worse.
The accident has raised questions about why no fire suppression system went off to put out the flames.
Connecticut does have state fire code standards that probably kept a fire at this Farmington gas station from becoming even more serious Monday night. Two kids were pulled out of the back seat of a car before anyone could get hurt.
However, the gas station does not appear to have a fire suppression system that releases powder and puts flames out quickly.
The NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters learned that all gas stations in Connecticut must have fire extinguishers at each island, emergency shut off switches for gas tanks at the registers, crash valves at the tanks that shut off the gas if they get hit and in most cases bumper guards.
Connecticut does not require a fire suppression system at each gas station and an industry association in the state believes that makes sense.
Mike Fox with the Gasoline and Automotive Service Dealers of America said, "These fire suppression systems run $30,000 to $50,000 to install and then $2,500 to $3,500 a year to maintain.”
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The association adds that the fire suppression systems also can go off even without a fire because they are sensitive to heat.
In fact, that’s what caused a system to active in West Hartford three years ago.
The state Fire Marshals' Association said it is comfortable with the state standard in place now due to the lack of fires like the one in Farmington Monday night.
