Fire at Tatamagouche nursing home displaces 47 residents

An overnight fire at a nursing home in Tatamagouche, N.S., has staff trying to find alternative accommodations for residents.

All 47 residents of the Willow Lodge special-care home will need to find beds at anotherfacility as crews assess the extent of the damage to the home.

"Most of them are elderly people that can't live by themselves that need assistance with everything," said Matt Forbes, deputy fire chief for the Tatamagouche Fire Department.

He told CBC Newsfirefighters responded to an alarm atWillow Lodge at around 2:20 a.m. Tuesday.

Staff at the home could smell smoke and the sprinklers were activated, said Forbes.

"We found smoke but couldn't find fire, and after a few minutes we discovered a room, a sprinkler had been activated and there'd been a fire in the room and sprinklers had put it out," he said.

Forbes said fire damage was contained to the room, but it appears there's some water damage in parts ofthe home from the sprinklers.

Janine Jaconelli, executive director of Willow Lodge,said it started whenan electric organ in a small kitchen at the facility caught fire.

Nobody was injured, said Jaconelli, butit's unclear when residents will be able to return.She expects it will only be around twoto fourdays, but a team is still assessing the damage.

Jaconelli said she expects all residents to have a temporary bed in a nearby nursing home or hospital by the end of the day.

As staff look to find places to houseresidents, manyare being sheltered at the Tatamagouche Fire Hall, Forbes said.

In a statement, the Canadian Red Cross said volunteers have brought in cots and blankets to the fire hall to help provide additional support for residents who rely on walkers or wheelchairs.

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