On October 31, just after 6:00pm, Crescent City Fire & Rescue was dispatched to a reported structure fire at 1445 Parkway, Addie Meedom House, an assisted living and memory care facility. Dispatch reported that staff was evacuating the residents from the structure. Pelican Bay State Prison Fire Department was requested mutual aid to respond.
Fire units arrived on scene to find facility staff in the process of removing residents to the front porch of the building. Fire personnel accessed the building to locate the fire as staff continued the evacuation. The fire was located in a unit to the rear of the facility, with smoke in the hallway. The room door was closed. Fire personnel opened the door and found smoke to within two feet of the floor. A pillow was smoldering on the floor. Facility staff had discharged a fire extinguisher in an effort to control the fire, but the pillow was still burning. Fire personnel did a fast-visual search to make sure there were no occupants in the room and remove the pillow. Additional bedding that was scorched was also removed. With heavy smoke in the fire room and the hallway, firefighters began removal of smoke from the building.
Staff successfully evacuated all 37 occupants. Three occupants and one staff member were transported by Del Norte Ambulance to Sutter Coast Hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation. Buses were requested from Del Norte Unified School District and Redwood Coast Transit to transport the remaining occupants from the facility to a temporary shelter location arranged through Del Norte Office of Emergency Services and Red Cross; CERT also assisted with sheltering needs. Del Norte County Sheriff and Crescent City Police Department assisted with patient loading, and transporting food, water, and other personal need items to the temporary shelter location.
Crescent City Fire & Rescue departed the scene at 8:20pm. After investigation, the fire was determined to have been accidental, and the result of a pillow contacting a wall heater in the room. Addie Meedom House is working with a local cleanup contractor to get the facility back in service as rapidly as possible.
Crescent City Fire & Rescue would like to commend the staff and management at Addie Meedom House for their quick and orderly evacuation of the occupants of the facility. Their fast action and concern for the safety of the occupants was key in getting everyone out and preventing an emergency from becoming a tragic event.
Crescent City Fire & Rescue thanks the many agencies who responded to the scene and supported on-scene operations, dispatch, as well as the agencies and people involved with temporary sheltering, transportation, and support of the overall operation.
