Category Archives: Nursing Home/Senior Living

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Biloxi, MS – Fire at assisted living facility held in check by sprinkler system; No injuries

The grounds surrounding the Pillars were filled with emergency vehicles and crews throughout the morning on Wednesday, after flames forced residents and staff at the Pillars Medical Residences in Biloxi to evacuate.

Fire Chief, Joe Boney says the fire wasn’t as involved as others he’s seen, but it was still a dangerous situation. “Anytime you have a fire like this, it doesn’t take a lot of fire. The smoke is what gets people. Especially when you have many residents in a close area like this,” said Boney.

Chief Boney says the sprinkler system also did its job. “It did stop the fire. It held the fire until we could get to it to put it out,” said Boney.

According to Boney, only one staff member had to be treated for smoke inhalation, and no residents were injured. The staff at the facility had already started the evacuations when the fire department arrived.

“They did exactly what they were supposed to do, they made sure their residents were safe,” said Rhonda Nettles, administrator of a sister facility to the Pillars.

According to Nettles, the staff members practice several fire drills a month to make sure they are prepared for any incident. Since the fire was contained to one room, the residents were simply moved to a safer area of the building.

In addition to the building’s safety features, all agencies involved were on top of their game. AMR operations manager, Gregory Doyle, says that teamwork is a product of proper training.

“When you train all the time together. Go to the same meetings, go to the same planning sessions, it helps out a lot,” said Doyle. Although one wing of the facility had a bit of water damage, officials hoped to have the residents back to their rooms by the end of the day.

 

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Belmont, CA – 4 a.m. fire at senior residential complex controlled with help from sprinkler system; No injuries

Firefighters battled to get a blaze under control Friday morning at a senior living community complex where 35 people were evacuated and was likely started by some cardboard boxes set near a wall heater, a fire captain said.

The San Mateo County Fire department said the 2-alarm apartment fire in Belmont in the 2400 block of Carlmont Drive. started about 4 a.m. on the second floor. No one was injured.

Capt. Patrick Halleran credited the building’s sprinkler system for saving lives. He added the boxes were in the apartment because an older gentleman had recently moved in.

Apartment Building, Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential, Residential High Rise

Fall River, MA – Sprinklers extinguish fire on 6th floor of apartment building with over 100 elderly and disabled residents; No injuries

An early-evening fire sent elderly and disabled residents of Borden Place West, 181 S. Main St., out of their apartments. The fire started around 5:30 p.m. in the trash compactor, according to Fall River District Fire Chief Douglas Sullivan. The exact cause was being investigated, but Sullivan said it appeared accidental.  The sprinkler went on in the trash compactor and extinguished the fire.

“The system worked the way that it should have,” Sullivan said. “The fire was contained.”

Wendy Carvalho, who acts as the fire warden on the sixth floor where she resides, said someone may have dropped an ashtray or cigarette into the trash chute “I knocked on everyone’s door,” Carvalho said. “They all came out.”

Most of the 100-plus residents in the building are elderly or disabled, with many using walkers and in wheelchairs. Heavy smoke hung in the hallways even after the fire was extinguished, and many residents sat outside waiting to get back into their apartments. Other residents were inside the community room on the street level, and out of harm’s way.

Resident Joseph Blanchard, who has lived in the building for 25 years, said it wasn’t the first fire at Borden West, but it was the worst. “There was really a lot of smoke,” Blanchard said.

Sullivan said Borden West owner Peabody Properties called in professional cleaners to remove the excess water from the apartments that were flooded on the first floor. All residents were allowed back inside within a couple of hours.

No residents were injured. One firefighter fell and injured his shoulder but was able to continue working. Responding to the fire were four engines, two ladder trucks, Rescue No. 1, Special Services, and Fall River police.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Hampton, VA – Sprinkler system contains fire at senior apartment building; no injuries

Hampton Division of Fire and Rescue responded to a fire in an apartment complex Wednesday morning, officials said. Dispatch was notified about 10 a.m. of a working incident at the Tidewater Senior Apartments in the 1400 block of West Queen Street.

The fire was put out shortly before 10:20 a.m., dispatch said.

The fire began in a third-floor unit’s bathroom, and it was contained by a sprinkler system until Hampton firefighters arrived on scene, Battalion Chief T.A. Hinton said.

The two units beneath the third-floor apartment suffered minor water damage because of the sprinkler system, Hinton said.

No one was displaced by the incident, and no injuries were reported.

Fire investigators determined the blaze was caused by a bathroom vent fan that malfunctioned, Hinton said.

Apartment Building, Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Hampton, VA – Early morning fire at senior apartment building controlled by single sprinkler; No injuries

Hampton fire officials say several units inside a retirement community were damaged after a fire early Thursday morning. It happened at the Seton Manor Apartments on Marcella Road. No one was hurt.

According to Hampton fire officials, someone was cooking around 6:30 a.m. A pan with grease caught fire and set off the sprinkler.

Bertha Davis said she and her neighbors woke up to fire trucks and sirens. “I heard the alarm go off and then I went to the door. People were in the hallway,” she said. “A lot of people had to come out in their night clothes. The ones that had walkers, they were in the hallway.”

Despite the damage and the inconvenience, officials said the sprinkler system worked. “It did its job. It stopped the fire. That’s the most important part,” Stowers said. Stowers said it should take at least three days to completely clean the damage.

10 On Your Side tried talking to apartment managers about what happened and where the people displaced will go. They refused an interview, but sent a statement to 10 On Your Side late Thursday afternoon. The apartment says all affected residents to family homes or hotels while restorations are being completed.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential, Residential High Rise

Nashville, TN – No one hurt in senior high-rise after sprinklers extinguish overnight fire

Emergency crews evacuated a Nashville retirement home early Monday after a resident reportedly fell asleep while smoking and caught a chair on fire, a fire spokesman said. Fire crews responded about 1:15 a.m. to Trevecca Towers at 60 Lester Ave. for a report of smoke at the 16-story building, Nashville Fire Department spokesman Brian Haas said.

Arriving crews evacuated the tower and found several pieces of furniture on fire in a room on the second floor, Haas said. The building’s sprinklers put the fire out shortly after crews arrived, Haas said.

“We have a lot of residents whose families are concerned,” said Tyler Jones, the building’s manager. “Thankfully, the sprinkler system worked as designed, so we’re grateful no one was hurt.”

Nearly two dozen residents were displaced, Haas said, but some of them were able to be housed at vacant units in the same building. The American Red Cross was called in to contact families of the other displaced residents to find temporary homes until their units are repaired. The nonprofit agency also provided cots for a few other displaced residents.

Although the facility may also have to put some displaced residents in hotel rooms, Jones said he wants to assure families that the residents will be taken care of.

 

Nursing Home/Senior Living

Plano, TX – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in controlling nursing home fire; No injuries reported

Firefighters responded to a Plano nursing home Saturday morning after receiving a call about smoke from an employee at Life Care Center of Plano, in the 3800 block of W. Park Boulevard.

The employee called 911 at 8:47 a.m. to report that fire alarms were sounding and that senior residents were being removed from the property.

When Plano Fire-Rescue crews arrived, they discovered a haze of smoke in one of the main hallways and a lot of smoke inside a glassed-in laundry room, according to Capt. Peggy Harrell, department spokeswoman. It is believed that the fire started in a clothes dryer.

“This is what we call a high-occupancy load, where there are lots of people in a building and in a place where there are lots of seniors who might not be able to evacuate themselves,” she said. “We took extra precautions.”

Harrell said the nursing home had good evacuation procedures in place, but once investigators located the fire and determined how far it was from the residential hallways, no evacuation had to take place and residents were able to return to their rooms.

“We were able to close the fire doors and keep the room where the fire was isolated,” she said. “A sprinkler head kept the fire in check, and firefighters brought in the handline to put the remaining fire out.”

Harrell said investigators discovered an armload of clothes on fire in the affected dryer, but the exact cause of the fire has not been determined.

No injuries were reported, but Harrell said a rescue squad was on the scene to check out anyone who may have come close to the smoke.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Springfield, VT – Overnight fire at senior housing building contained to one unit by sprinkler system

Two residents of a senior housing building were taken to Springfield Hospital early Friday morning after a fire broke out in a fourth-floor apartment.

The resident of the fourth floor apartment in the Huber Building who was injured is expected to be okay, according to Bill Morlock, the executive director of the Springfield Housing Authority, which owns the senior housing project.

He said that while the building’s sprinkler system contained the fire to the woman’s apartment, there was extensive water damage to the building and that 12 apartments on the north side of the building were affected.

Springfield Fire Chief Russell Thompson said that two other residents of the building needed medical attention as they were being evacuated, and one of those residents was transported to Springfield Hospital, where the apartment resident was also taken.

Neither the fire chief nor Morlock said they had direct information on the condition of the residents.

Thompson said that residents were evacuated and sheltered at the nearby Congregational Church, and that the Red Cross responded to help the residents.

Morlock said Friday morning that preliminary investigation by the Vermont state fire marshal’s office indicated that the resident fell asleep while smoking.

“It’s our understanding that she is OK,” said Morlock.

He said the residents in those apartments were currently staying with friends and family, and that a cleaning service had been brought in Friday morning to start cleaning up the water.

He said that electricity was turned off in the north side of the building, and that people would not be allowed back to their apartments until the building was inspected. Additionally, the elevator in the building was also turned out, pending an inspection.

Springfield firefighters responded to the alarm around midnight, and Morlock said that the fire department called him shorty before 1 a.m.

He said the fire department had evacuated all 60 apartments in the building until they were sure that the fire was contained, and he said the residents were out of their homes until about 3 a.m., while the air quality in the building was checked.

“The building suffered considerable water damage that resulted in securing floors one to four on the north side of the structure,” the fire chief said.

 

He said there was “heavy smoke” on fourth floor of the building.

 

He said many area fire departments and ambulances responded to the 12::20 a.m. fire alarm to assist Springfield.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Townshend, VT – Sprinklers help control attic fire at assisted living facility

Valley Cares was evacuated Monday evening after a lightning strike caused a fire in the attic of the assisted living facility.

Just after 5 p.m. 39 residents were transported down the road to Leland & Gray Union High School after the fire alarm and sprinkler system alerted staff to the fire in the attic.

Valley Cares Executive Director Susanne Shapiro said she did not know the condition of the building, though she said the facility would remain closed until a safety inspector could tour the damaged section of the building Tuesday.

“Everybody is safe. The staff did exactly what they were trained to do,” Shapiro said. “Most of our residents are able to go home with family, and for anyone who can not go home, we will find a place for them to stay tonight.”

Townshend Volunteer Fire Department Safety Officer Dale West said the call came in just after 5 p.m., and the blaze was quickly toned to a three-alarm fire due to the large number of residents who had to be evacuated.

West said the sprinkler system helped control the fire and it was quickly extinguished.

A portion of the building did sustain significant water damage and West said a state safety inspector would walk through the structure Tuesday before anyone would be allowed back into their apartments.

“It could have been much worse,” West said. “It’s always hard to get to a fire in an attic, but the sprinkler system saved the day and they’re going to have to start cleaning up tomorrow.”

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Pennsville Twp, NJ – Sprinklers credited with preventing spread of fire at independent living facility

A fire authorities say was caused by unattended cooking prompted the evacuation of residents from an age 55-plus high-rise Saturday morning.

The fire at the five story Kent Avenue Apartments at 11 Kent Ave. was reported around 11 a.m.

Deepwater Fire Chief Joe Hogan said the fire was sparked by unattended cooking. He said there was no one in the apartment where the blaze started when firefighters entered.

The fire was located in Apartment 507 in the east wing of the building — on the top floor.

No one — residents or firefighters — were hurt in the incident, Hogan said.

Approximately six to seven apartments were damaged from fire, smoke and water, Hogan said.

There was also reported water throughout various parts of the building.

Hogan credited the building’s sprinkler system with helping to quickly help douse the fire and prevent its spread.