By Paula Roberts
Charred wood from an electrical fire in the attic at Cove’s Edge early morning on September 17. |
A fire in a light fixture at Cove’s Edge in Damariscotta forced the evacuation of a long-term care wing at the nursing home early Thursday morning, Sept. 18. Cove’s
Edge is a 76-bed long-term care and skilled-care facility.
Cove’s Edge staff and Central Lincoln County Ambulance personnel safely evacuated 22 residents. There were no injuries.
“When the fire alarms sounded, staff immediately began evacuating the two affected adjoining rooms and then the whole wing of 13 units. We are very proud
of our employees in this organization,” said Scott Shott, a spokesman for Cove’s Edge parent organization Lincoln County Healthcare.
Lincoln County Sheriff’s Deputy Jared Mitkus “was the first on scene. He got people moving. I give him a lot of credit for his help,” Shott said.
“The fire department was here in five minutes. When you think how many times they are here for nothing, like burned popcorn, and they still were still
here” virtually immediately, Shott said.
A Maine State Fire Marshal’s Office investigator was called to the scene and “determined that the fire began in the ballast of a bathroom ceiling lighting
fixture. The bathroom was shared by two resident rooms,” Shott said.
The fire was contained to an attic space. “The sprinkler system kept it under control until fire units got there and put it out,” Damariscotta Fire Chief
John Roberts said.
Roberts said firefighters used one dry chemical and one water can to extinguish the small fire. The fire burned roughly a 6-by-6-foot area in the attic.
The sprinkler system “caused a lot of water damage,” Roberts said.
“You could see how fast things could get out of control, if it had not been for the sprinkler system,” Shott said.
The Bristol and Newcastle fire departments responded with mutual aid. “Most of the work was getting the smoke out of the building,” Roberts said. Firemen
from the three departments used positive pressure fans to exhaust the smoke.
“We had a quick response by mutual aid departments. I was glad we were able to extinguish the fire without anyone getting hurt,” Roberts said.
The fire was paged out at 1:17 a.m. and fire personnel were on scene for about three hours.
Of the 22 evacuated residents, nine were relocated within Cove’s Edge, six were moved to the nearby LincolnHealth – Miles Campus hospital, four to Chase
Point, the nearby assisted-living center; one went home with family, and two were transported to St. Andrews Village.
Lincoln County Healthcare President and CEO James Donovan released a statement about the fire.
“We want to recognize and thank the Cove’s Edge staff for their rapid response moving residents out of the affected area. Thanks to their dedication and
hard work, all the residents in that part of our facility were quickly and safely relocated,” Donovan said in the statement. “We also want to thank the Damariscotta,
Newcastle, and Bristol fire departments and Lincoln County Sheriff’s Deputy Jared Mitkus for their rapid and professional response.”
The fire and water cleanup company Servpro was on scene Thursday morning cleaning up the wing. “Four rooms currently have no power and are out of
commission. Of those four, two will need repairs due to fire, water, and smoke damage,” Shott said.
“Once a thorough safety inspection is complete, nine of the 13 rooms will be put back into service. This is expected to take at least 24 hours,” Shott
said.
