Hospital blaze forces 100 patients to evacuate
Emergency Management Alert, April 5, 2005
One hundred patients evacuated the upper levels of the six-story Milford (MA) Regional Medical Center this week after a fire broke out in a biomedical waste storage room, The Boston Globe reported.
When smoke filled the hallways, staff members brought patients to the ground floor of the facility. A sprinkler system put out the flames, but burning plastic bags containing the bio-waste quickly generated thick smoke throughout the building. It is unclear at this point what kind of biological waste caught on fire. The fire is under investigation.
Firefighters checked air in the building for carbon monoxide and other hazardous waste residue.
'We want to make sure the atmosphere is completely safe to put those patients back in their rooms," Fire Chief John Touhey told the Globe.
It took several hours for the smoke to clear and for patients to return to their rooms, Frank Saba, hospital president, told the Globe.
Saba praised the staff for following the hospital's disaster plan.
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