Category Archives: Nursing Home/Senior Living

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Cloquet, MN – Fire at senior apartment building held in check by sprinkler system

Emergency officials responded to a fire at a Cloquet senior living residence Friday evening which has forced some residents out of their apartments. The fire at Larson Commons was reported around 6 p.m. Friday. Area firefighters responded to the incident at the senior living residence and found smoke on the fifth floor.

“When crews arrived, we had multiple people yelling out of the window that they couldn’t get out of their apartments,” Cloquet Area Fire District Chief Kevin Schroeder said. “Initial crews found smoke throughout the fifth floor.”  Chief Schroeder adds crews found fire in the corner of the hallway. The fire had been confined to the area by the sprinkler system.

“The sprinkler system kept [the fire] in check. The fire started in some furniture, went up the wall into the ceiling,” Chief Schroeder said. Fire officials extinguished the fire and checked the walls to make sure the fire had not spread to other parts of the building. The cause of the fire is not known yet.

As crews check the electrical systems of the building complex to ensure no damages, residents have been evacuated. The Red Cross is assisting affected residents. Crews with the fire department are also assisting with recovering personal belongings and needs of residents affected.  Two people were evaluated for minor injuries. One resident was brought to Duluth to receive medical attention.  Cloquet Area Fire District was assisted by Carlton and Esko Fire Departments. The fire remains under investigation.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Dover, OH – Overnight laundry room fire at nursing home put out by sprinkler system; No injuries

A fire broke out at an Ohio Valley nursing home overnight.  The Dover and New Philadelphia fire departments and Smith Ambulance Service responded to Hennis Care Nursing Center a little after midnight.  Officials say the fire started in the laundry room. The sprinkler system was activated and put out the flames.  No one was injured.

Apartment Building, Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Hagerstown, MD – Fire in apartment building for the elderly and disabled is extinguished with help from sprinkler system

Fire broke out in a fifth-floor apartment in Potomac Towers on West Baltimore Street Wednesday night, according to a Washington County 911 supervisor.  The fire was reported about 9:45 p.m., and was determined to be caused by food on a stove, the supervisor said.  The fire was extinguished, although firefighters were dealing with a lot of water in the building from a sprinkler system, the supervisor said.  Potomac Towers is a multi-story building that provides housing for elderly and disabled residents.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Lubbock, TX – Sprinkler system contains fire at retirement community; Fire started on balcony

Lubbock Fire Rescue responded to a 911 call about a fire at Ventura Place retirement community off of 54th St and Gary Avenue at around 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon.  Rose Killebrew, a resident at Ventura Place, recalled the confusion many of the residents felt.  “Of course, I didn’t know what was happening, I just heard the siren go off. So, I went to the door and everybody was leaving…”

Workers at Ventura Place helped gather the residents outside of the building, giving them shade and water while they waited for assistance. One resident was taken to the hospital with minor smoke inhalation. Fortunately, the building’s sprinkler system had contained the fire before it was able to spread. Around 140 residents were evacuated during the fire. One woman was taken to the hospital and treated for slight smoke inhalation.

The Emergency Medical Task Force 1 bus was called to the scene as a precaution and to assist the residents. Officials took residents to the Lubbock Seventh-Day Adventist Church and asked families of the residents to come pick them up. Kevin Ivy with Lubbock Fire Rescue talked about where the fire started.

“Crews found a fire that had been on the third story outside balcony. It appears to have started at that point… we’re not exactly sure yet. But upon arrival, it was out or controlled due to the sprinkler system.” Bobbye Maxey was at the retirement community to pick up her father who lives there.

“Administrators let us know that they were asking all of the residents to call their family if they had some family to come and pick them up. They are going to take them to a church next door, I’m not sure what’s after that but I was told they can’t go back into Ventura simply because of the flooding that went on from the sprinklers.”

After a quick call to management on Wednesday evening, they told KCBD that residents in the first and second floor have been allowed to return.

No timetable has been established yet as to when the third floor residents can return. The Lubbock Fire Marshal’s office is still investigating the cause of the fire.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Kenosha, WI – Garbage can fire at nursing home contained by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

A small fire at a nursing home and rehabilitation facility is being investigated as arson.

The Kenosha Fire Department and Kenosha Police were called to Clairidge House, 1519 60th St., at about 6:15 p.m. Monday for a report of smoke in the basement, with the facilities smoke alarms on, Fire Chief Charles Leipzig said.

He said the fire was contained by a sprinkler system, with a sprinkler head activated in the bathroom where the fire began.

Kenosha Police said the fire appeared to be intentionally set in a garbage can in a basement bathroom. Leipzig said that it appears someone may have gotten into the building through an open basement door to set the fire.

No one was injured.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Melbourne, FL – Kitchen fire at retirement home put out by sprinkler system

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Nashville, TN – Fire at assisted living center put out by sprinkler system; Overheated wall charger identified as cause

Officials responded to a reported fire at the NHC Place at the Trace Assisted Living Center in Bellevue.  According to fire officials, a charger that was plugged into the wall overheated and caused a small fire. The sprinkler system then activated, which put the fire out. The facility was evacuated and one person was taken to a hospital for a minor injury.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Webster Groves, MO – Fire in senior living community contained by sprinkler system; No residents or staff injured

Shortly after 5:30 p.m. last Wednesday, a fire broke out at the Laclede Groves Senior Living Community in Webster Groves. The facility is located in the 700 block of South Laclede Station Road.
The call came out as a 2-alarm fire. When firefighters arrived on scene they found heavy smoke on the second floor of the facility. The fire had been contained to an apartment on the second floor by the sprinkler system.  Firefighters evacuated residents from the second floor, and later from the rest of the building.  The second floor was damaged by fire, smoke, and water.  Residents are currently being relocated to other facilities till investigators can assess the damage. No residents or staff were injured in the fire. One firefighter was transported to the hospital for a medical evaluation. 

 

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential, Residential High Rise

Oklahoma City, OK – No injuries after fire at high rise retirement home is put out by sprinkler system

A northeast side retirement home has been partially evacuated due to a high-rise fire.  The Oklahoma City Fire Department responded around 12:18 p.m. on Sunday at the Senior Living Center in the 1200 block of N. Kate Avenue.  Upon arrival, heavy smoke was reported.  Officials said the fire ended up being a mattress in a room on the fifth floor. Some residents evacuated, and others sheltered in place.  The fire was put out, while a sprinkler system continued flowing and crews worked to control the water.  Firefighters said no injuries have been reported.  Less than an hour later, residents were allowed back in their rooms except for those who live on the fifth floor.  Automatic sprinkler systems save lives,” said Battalion Chief Benny Fulkerson. “Water damage is much preferred over larger fires and fatalities from smoke.”  No other details have been released at this time.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Cumming, GA – Fire at assisted living facility controlled with help from sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Nearly 40 residents of an assisted living facility are safe after being evacuated due to a fire.  According to Forsyth County Fire Department spokesperson Jason Shivers, the fire happened at Gracemont Assisted Living. The fire apparently originated in a ventilation fan in a storage room for the facility’s dining hall. The fire itself was kept under control by the sprinkler system and a maintenance worker who took hold of a fire extinguisher. However, the water damage from the containment process will mean the building is unavailable for some time until crews can make repairs. Shivers said the fire was not considered suspicious and said that no residents, staff or firefighters were injured. The fire department is now working with the facility and the Red Cross to provide assistance to 38 residents who were forced out of their homes.

 

Reporting on lives and property saved by fire sprinklers