Fierce and growing grassroots resistance has complicated new-build plans for data centers across the United States and globally. Drought-prone communities have expressed particularly strong opposition because of concerns that include the facilities’ significant water consumption.

In response, some data center owners and developers are beginning to adopt technologies like closed-loop cooling systems that reduce water usage. Unfortunately, such systems don’t limit the massive volume of water needed to extinguish potential fires, an issue that is becoming more top of mind in key localities.

During US National Fire Prevention Week (Oct. 4-10), which promotes fire safety in commemoration of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, data center practitioners would be wise to consider waterless fire suppression. Adopting such technologies illustrates a strong commitment to conservation and the safety of employees and data center communities. Such investment further serves to preserve financial health and business continuity, an act of responsible corporate stewardship in response to a significant and rising threat.

The growing threat of data center fires

The risk of fire has increased dramatically as data centers grow in quantity and size. There have been 24 documented reports of data center fires since 2014, with 14 taking place since 2022. This includes the September 2025 data center fire in South Korea, which caused a nationwide shutdown of online government services and led to the permanent loss of approximately 858TB of government data, according to some official reports.

An April 2026 study by researchers at Texas A&M University, George Washington University, and the University of California, Berkeley further illustrates the rising threat of fire among modern data centers, noting the probability of downtime, server damage, data loss, and human casualties. It recommends that regulatory agencies amend current regulations to adopt more effective practices based on available data and community response, and specifically points to waterless systems — clean chemical agents in particular — as among the key technologies data centers should adopt to reduce the likelihood of such incidents.

Understanding waterless fire suppression systems

Unlike conventional and water mist sprinklers, which take several minutes to activate as heat from burning objects intensifies and rises to the ceiling, clean chemical agent systems interrupt this process. They use the incipient stage of smoke formation as part of the trigger for the release of agents that absorb heat from burning materials and lower their temperature below the ignition point. This suppresses fire within seconds, before heat and flames have damaged equipment or activated sprinklers, thereby ensuring water is never deployed.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approves clean chemical agents for normally occupied spaces when used in accordance with its guidelines and those in NFPA 2001.

Other early detection and waterless fire suppression systems utilize inert gases that lower the oxygen content in the room to a level where the process of combustion is no longer supported. The gases are natural, have an ozone depletion potential (ODP) of zero and a global warming potential (GWP) of zero — important attributes for community relations.

Both clean chemical agent and inert gas systems should be installed alongside mandated sprinklers, which remain essential for building structures, hydrocarbon applications and tunnels. They provide a complementary, added layer of protection.

An investment in both community relations and risk management

Crucially, investments in such technologies serve as more than strong PR measures. They provide crucial operational and financial protection, mitigating the risk fires pose to costly data center assets. What’s more, they protect these assets from sprinkler-related water damage, which can yield catastrophic losses into the millions. Even the latest water mist systems can cause immense destruction and disruption, spraying gallons of liquid on sensitive equipment. This can result in lost revenue, replacements and repairs, reputational issues, and system downtime, which can prove most damaging.

An August 2026 analysis of insurance industry data center claims by Allianz Commercial illustrates the risk, finding that fire accounts for well over half of $800 million in analyzed losses, making it the dominant driver of severity. It also shows that water damage is the most frequent cause of claims by volume. The report calls for a unified and holistic approach to risk management, fire protection in particular.

As data center opposition grows, risk management must extend to community relations, helping build and repair trust with residents who live and work alongside new projects. Investing in advanced early detection and fire suppression systems is one key step in this important effort, conserving water, maintaining uptime, protecting structures, and preserving life.