Catastrophe averted in Post Falls

A Sunday morning fire at a Post Falls assisted-living center had the makings of a true catastrophe.

But as fires go, this one turned out as well as possible and should serve as a lesson on the benefits of preparation, according to fire and rescue officials.

“This was almost movie-perfect,” Post Falls police Lt. Scott Haug said of the rescue operation.

The first police officers arrived at Garden Homes, 820 N. William St., within a minute after the fire had been called in to dispatchers, said Jim Lyon, spokesman for the Kootenai Fire and Rescue Department. The police officers, despite having only limited air filters, “got right in there and started to get people out,” Lyon said.

Within three minutes, fully equipped firefighters were at the center, helping evacuate its 15 elderly residents. No one was hurt.

Neighbors also responded quickly when rescuers asked for help keeping the residents warm.

“All of a sudden, quilts and blankets were coming out of the woodwork,” Lyon said.

The cause of the fire is not known, he said. The blaze appears to have started outside against a back wall, then spread through the attic, filling the facility with smoke. The smoke was thick enough that fire alarms went off in a business across the street.

Lyon credited Garden Homes for its long-standing emphasis on fire safety training. The staff had conducted regular fire drills and often had invited Kootenai Fire and Rescue officials to visit the facility.

“They stay current,” Lyon said.

Four neighboring homes offered to take in the residents as arrangements were being made. Guardian Angel Homes, also of Post Falls, sent a bus to pick up the men and women.

Within five hours of the fire, new homes had been found for the residents. Three will remain at Guardian Angel Homes, two will stay at Generations in Rathdrum and 10 were taken in by Beehive Homes in Pinehurst.

Ruby Stoker, owner of Garden Homes, said rebuilding will take at least six weeks. She and a crew were sorting through the damage Monday morning and packaging belongings from residents’ rooms.

Items from the charred facility were strewn across its lawn: water-warped copies of Reader’s Digest, a pile of broken and blackened easy chairs, a television set warped and twisted from the heat.

Lyon said the fire should serve as a reminder for people living in nursing homes – and their family members – to ask about the status of the facilities’ fire-escape plans and smoke-detection equipment. He also said Garden Homes’ policy of keeping doors closed at night helped prevent its residents from suffering smoke inhalation.

“The smoke’s going to find people faster than the fire,” Lyon said.