Eight people injured, 150 evacuated in apartment fire

4 free views left!

Eight people injured, 150 evacuated in apartment fire

By Michelle McNiel
World staff writer

Originally published March 15, 2010 at 8:23 p.m., updated March 16, 2010 at 10:19 a.m.

Breakfast served after a night at a shelter

By Dee Riggs

World staff writer

At 86, Willie Carpenter wasn’t keen on sleeping on a cot at a shelter set up by the Red Cross.

“Well, it’s a place to be,” he said, as he and eight other evacuees from the Garden Terrace retirement apartments ate breakfast this morning in a large meeting room at Wenatchee’s Seventh-day Adventist Church. Carpenter’s fourth floor apartment had too much smoke and water damage for him to return home after the fire Monday night.

Mariah Thornock, administrator at the Apple Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross, said this morning that 45 residents could not go back into their apartments last night. Nine were placed at a shelter, five at local hotels and the rest went home with family or friends.

The remaining residents were allowed to return to their apartments about 11 p.m. last night, she said.

Carpenter said firefighters led him safely out of his apartment and he was bused to the shelter at the church at Fifth Street and Western Avenue. He brought his 15-year-old cat, Gizmo, with him but someone from the Wenatchee Valley Humane Society took the cat until Carpenter can get back inside his apartment.

He was hoping for a quick return to his apartment and a reunion with Gizmo.

“It can’t live without me,” he said.

Cots also weren’t the best place for Ron Cockrum, 62, who was sitting in a wheelchair at the breakfast table. “I couldn’t hardly get up off the cot; I needed help,” he said.

Cockrum said a firefighter also helped him out of his fourth-floor apartment, which suffered smoke and water damage. Somewhere along the way, Cockrum got “a big wiff of smoke” and ended up getting checked out at a local hospital.

Jason Berbeck didn’t mind the cots.

“I slept and I had dreams so I’m sure I slept well,” said the fifth-floor evacuee. He remembers getting out of the complex on his own, with his coat and a backpack, but had to rely on firefighters to go back into his apartment later for his medication.

Serving breakfast were six volunteers with the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief organization. Paul Henry, pastor of the First Baptist Church in Leavenworth and chaplain for the Wenatchee volunteer group, said volunteers consider their work a ministry and “see it as a service to the community.”

The Salvation Army helped about five residents with housing, said Linda Davis, a Southern Baptist volunteer.

The Red Cross shelter will remain open indefinitely, Thornock said, and the Red Cross will continue to work with displaced residents, along with state aging services organizations, to help them find suitable accommodations.

“There are some health issues involved here,” she said of the elderly community. “Even though their apartment may not have burned down, it might not be livable for them for a while. We want to make sure we’re placing people in the right place; not just any apartment will work.”

Firefighters will work with Garden Terrace’s insurance company to ventilate the top two floors today, said Wenatchee Fire Chief Stan Smoke. They will focus on the fourth floor, where there was water damage, so more residents can get back in as soon as possible.

WENATCHEE — At least eight people were taken to area hospitals and about 150 people were evacuated from their apartments after a Monday evening fire at Garden Terrace in Wenatchee. About 100 people were later able to return to their apartments.

One woman was taken to Central Washington Hospital with second-degree burns and smoke inhalation after the fire broke out in her fourth-floor apartment just after 6 p.m. This morning Wenatchee Fire Chief Stan Smoke said the woman, who is blind, was transported to Harborview Medical Center. Her name and condition were not available.

Seven other people were taken to Central Washington Hospital and Wenatchee Valley Hospital for smoke inhalation. Smoke said this morning that he had not heard of anyone still in acute distress, other than the woman at Harborview.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, he said.

Many of the elderly and disabled residents of Garden Terrace and neighboring Garden Terrace West, located at the corner of Emerson and Fifth streets, were eating dinner in the ground-level dining area when the fire alarm sounded at 6:06 p.m.

“We didn’t think it was real,” said resident Ginger Zufall, 59. “But then someone started yelling ‘It’s real. It’s a real fire.’”

Staff then began quickly getting people out of the building.

When firefighters arrived, flames were shooting out of the window of apartment 404, where the fire started, Smoke said. A second alarm was quickly called, summoning firefighters from as far away as Leavenworth and Orondo.

The blaze was knocked down, and firefighters were able to get the apartment’s resident out.

Smoke filled the fourth, fifth and sixth floors of Garden Terrace, where many residents were still in their apartments. Firefighters told people to stay home until some of the smoke cleared.

Diane Hansen stood outside the apartment talking on a cell phone to her 92-year-old father, Fabian Hansen, who was told to stay in his room on the fourth floor. “The hallway is too full of smoke,” she said. “They told him he was better off in his room.”

“He’s scared,” she said, looking up at her father, who was standing at his window. “He went into his bedroom and shut the door because his front room is too smoky.”

About 15 minutes later, firefighters helped her father out of the building.

“Boy, it was really smoky,” he said. “I had a terrible time breathing before I got down the stairs.”

Hansen said he never heard the building’s fire alarm sound, but the smoke detector in his apartment kitchen went off. He opened his door to leave, but the hallway was too smoky. “I couldn’t see across the hall,” he said. So he went back inside and called his daughter, who lives a couple miles away.

“I opened the window and put my head out so I could breath,” he said.

Smoke said when the hallway started to clear out a bit, firefighters went apartment to apartment to help people out.

“Some folks were having respiratory problems because of the smoke,” he said.

Wenatchee Valley Medical Center sent an external triage team of doctors and nurses to evaluate residents on the lawn outside the apartment building. They checked blood pressure, administered oxygen and determined which residents should go to hospitals.

Clinic staff had done extensive training on the triage operation, but this was the first time they have done it in a real emergency, nurses at the scene said.

Garden Terrace resident Joann Golden could be seen standing at her sixth-floor window with a towel over her face.

“It really burned my throat to breath in there,” she said, gulping in the fresh air once she got outside.

Earlier, she said, she had tried to get out, but the smoke in the hallway was too thick. So she put a wet towel under her door, and then wet another towel to breath into because her apartment was filling with smoke.

She said she waited for firefighters to come, but when they didn’t, the 79-year-old decided to go out alone. She held the wet towel to her face to walk down her hallway, but said the air was clearer in the stair wells.

People brought blankets and bottled water to residents who sat in chairs, wheelchairs or on a rock wall outside the apartment building. Some residents were wearing shorts in the chilly air, and many were wearing slippers.

Michelle McNiel: 664-7152

mcniel@wenatcheeworld.com

» Recommend this story.

» 52 comments on this story

Want to comment on this story? All Wenatchee World members are invited to comment on stories, by using the form below. Please know that we at wenatcheeworld.com hope our site is useful, entertaining and civil. So we'll delete comments that are obscene, abusive or way off topic. We appreciate it when readers use the "suggest removal" button to flag inappropriate comments. For more about interacting with the site, see our Use Policy.

UhWrongAnswer 3 years, 2 months ago

"Rose Kennedy, who works in the office, said they do not have a plan for housing people in an emergency."

Are you kidding me?! You don't have something in play for when these types of events take place(especially dealing with the elderly), shame on you!

AND

"kitchen staff told the people to stay put for a short time."

HELLO -- where is your training people? Even if it had been a false alarm, you always treat every alarm as though if it were the real thing! Because of reasons like this.

girlfawkes 3 years, 2 months ago

Yes, it's a problem. A worse problem is that there is no facility in this valley who could possibly take 150 people on such short notice. It would not be possible to put a plan into place until the event occurred. It's unfortunate, but it's reality. It simply isn't possible to have a master plan for this type of situation unless they keep an empty facility fully stocked with beds, meds, and all the amenities on stand by, and I don't think anyone can afford that. They'll do what any facility in this valley would do, desperately call all the other facilities and try to place people a few at a time. It's a huge job and I can't think of any prior planning that would make it easier. . I think kitchen staff probably did the right thing. Better to temporarily keep all the people where they were (in a smoke-free room) instead of letting them leave and wander off to gosh knows where, especially with dementia patients. . Of more concern to me is how did this fire start?

pete154 3 years, 2 months ago

Is there anything that we in the community can do to help house these people? Good job, Lois! You are a hero!

KLC 3 years, 2 months ago

How very cool that they bring out Doctors and Nurses to triage and assess residents at the scene!! I like this!! :)

Morris 3 years, 2 months ago

I have a family member who was evacuated from the Terrace and was one of the seven treated for inhalation. First, my profound thanks to those who did attempt to notify residents of the real world fire. Second, my sincere thanks to the fire, rescue, medical and police personnel who responded to the scene. My family member was gratefully escorted down six flights of stairs with the assistance of Wenatchee Fire's finest. Third, I have SERIOUS questions for the staff of Garden Terrace. They have been questioned before about evac plans and disaster responses and responsibilities. They have apparently blown it off in the past and it certainly showed for this event. When I arrive in the morning to assess what my family member will need, I can guarantee that the staff and I will talk . . . Fourth, GT facilities do allow smoking and do have kitchenettes in the rooms. A cause for the fire could be anything from overloaded power cords to a cooking fire to a smoking materials related incident.

I certainly hope that she can return to her apartment tomorrow although there will be smoke damage to look at as well as long term occupancy (her apartment was two floors directly up). But GT senior staff have some explaining to do.

girlfawkes 3 years, 2 months ago

"Fourth, GT facilities do allow smoking" . I was wondering about this, they shouldn't according to the ban on smoking in places of business. I realize it is also a residence, but it is a for-profit enterprise. . I'm sure the state inspector will also have questions for them.

girlfawkes 3 years, 2 months ago

Oh, BTW- Awesome job, Lois. You ARE a hero! So many people would just keep on driving or stand there and gawk.

brinda 3 years, 2 months ago

I have been reading the post on this and I gotta tell ya.. we were there ...we were having our monthly meeting in the rec room when the alarm went off...we hesitated not sure it was real but one member smelled smoke so we thought ok this is real ..we went to the dinning room and no one was leaving the staff was blocking the stairs and the elevator not wanting anyone to go upstairs.. our group went out but a couple of us had to go back in and get our friends guide dog..they didn't want us too of course but we went anyway.. the second floor was full of smoke there were two officers on the floor knocking on doors that helped us get the dog, when we got back down stairs..people were still sitting there... the kitchen staff was calming them and waiting for something official to tell them what to do I asked an officer should we get these people out of here.. he said wait to see what the fireman says.. it wasn't more than few seconds and a fireman came through and said yes take them out.. we began helping people to go out,,, the kitchen staff did the same.. they were all headed to the grass area.. we also knew these folks would have to sit so we also started grabbing chairs.. and secondly.. we knew they were going to get cold so we started pulling off our coats and digging blankets and anything else out of our cars..to wrap them in.. my husband even drove to our house a block away and grabbed all the blankets he could find...there were people helping people all around me it was amazing sight.. medical people from the clinic came and ordered more blankets and somebody brought some water.. It was a crazy rush.. it was all happening so fast.. I did ask several people after a while.. I didn't know who was in charge ... is there someplace for these people to go.. like the pud or something even for a few hours if they can't get back inside for a long time ..,, no one knew anything.. but we all did the best we could....

bigdaddyjwa 3 years, 2 months ago

If memory serves me right they have had other incidents there. Wondering if they need some new rules. I dont know what caused fire however if it is smoking related they need to revisit their regulations and I am a smoker but do not smoke indoors for this and other reasons so I am not picking on smokers just hope people are being carefull

Morris 3 years, 2 months ago

I challenge Garden Terrace to show that they had an effective and PRACTICED plan in place. In speaking with the family member, the staff were non-committal as to whether they had a plan in place and could not identify when they last practiced (at least among the staff) an evacuation prior to today's fire. The injuries only occur when there is no control in exiting, particularly with those who have limited or no mobility. The general or kitchen staff, when presented with an emergency, should have a primary responsibility to work as a team for the safe evacuation of the tenants from common spaces and then the rooms, not stand in the dining room and tell everyone to remain. It is questionable whether any plans, planned or ad hoc, were done by the staff. I am informed that the various alarms were correctly sounding but due to previous false alarms, they were largely ignored in the beginning. I trust that the Wenatchee Fire Marshall, along with other state and local investigators, will ensure that Garden Terrace has effective and practiced plans in place after this.

I give kudos to Lois and Brinda for being there and pitching in and helping as needed.

DPage 3 years, 2 months ago

I was sitting in my car and watching wondering if all these elderly people were ok and thinking "Thankyou Jesus that my grandma is safe and sound in her home and doesnt have to live in a place like that and thinking God please let them be ok" I wanted to help in some way but stayed away and watched knowing things were taken care of! Good Job to all that helped It was so sad to see the elderly standing out in the cold or in their wondows waiting for the fire men. I think in another case like this somewhere through the city should open there doors to keep them warm or cool if in summer months Garden Terrace you need to find an emergency plan for if this ever happens again!

AreUSerious 3 years, 2 months ago

UhWrongAnswer you took the words right out of my mouth. I was completely dumbfounded by staff comments at this facility. Talk about substandard care for these residents. And to think this company is getting paid to house the elderly and disabled. I hope an investigation is done by the state to find out why staff told the residence to stay put when a fire alarm went off. And this is another reason why I will never put a member of my family into a place like this.

Orphanthall 3 years, 2 months ago

I am in disbelief they do not have a plan in place to deal with this sort of incident. It is called an an emergency action plan. The first phase could be as simple as to have a contract in place with link to provide emergency bus transport and a school with a cafateria to keep the people out of the elements. What if it was below zero out. Anyone that says you can not plan for this is ignorant.

Makena 3 years, 2 months ago

I love society today....immediately blame and assume. For those of you with family members there, where was YOUR emergency / contingency plan for your loved one in this type of situation? R WOOLS has it right on their post. From what I've read the staff make the right calls and did the right thing - same as any other business I have worked in where there was a larger group of people. People like Wrong Answer need to look in the mirror and get off the power trip. I sincerely hope (and know) our community will come together to aid those residents who are lacking family resources. LOIS - the world needs more of you!

momagirl2ababyboy2005 3 years, 2 months ago

I think that if your going to run or own a retirement home like Garden Terrance should have some kind of emergancy plan to home their residents just in case something like this happens again. I just glad that my grandmother and some of the other residents that I know and everyone that lives there got out safe besides the ones that ended up in the hospital but I am glad that everyone is still alive!

And as some of you that are on here complaning about how the kitchen staff were in the wrong for telling people to stay put for a little bit should shut your traps because there has been alot of faulse fire alarms go off in the past so it is really hard to know if it is real or if someone is playing a prank! So please just stop complaning and learn the facts first!!!!!

Mommyofthree 3 years, 2 months ago

Bottom line is everyone got out safe and alive! Yes someone was burnt and few with smoke inhalation but it could have been worse! Kudos to those who stepped up and helped in anyway possible! Thanks to our men and woman in uniform who quickly acted to help and assist in putting this fire out! Before we all pass judgement on people...let's wait until the final report comes out!

ANON9121 3 years, 2 months ago

What's up with all the fires this week? there have been three or four reported in the newspaper.. I could be wrong but maybe there's an arsonist???? probably not, It's just weird to me. lol

girlfawkes 3 years, 2 months ago

"I think that if your going to run or own a retirement home like Garden Terrance should have some kind of emergancy plan to home their residents just in case something like this happens again." . I do agree that they need to have some kind of disaster plan, but in reality, no amount of planning is going to handle 150 people with special needs! Sure, they could use a school gym or something, but who wants their 90 year old grandmother with dementia to sleep on a wood floor with a red cross cot? Where will the meds come from in the very short time frame required? Where will the Hoyer lifts, commodes, and all the related items come from? Privacy curtains? Enough food to serve 150 people 3x a day, with special diet needs- allergies, diabetic, low sodium, ect... . In a situation like this, no one is going to be happy with the amount of preparation the facility is able to do. . It is a very emotionally charged issue, but I would still challenge anyone to tell me or Garden Terrace WHERE you can put 150 people and have all their basic needs met on no notice. There is no place, period. No amount of blame will change that. . Shawn is right, in that local primary family of residents should have a back up plan just in case. After all, if family can't care for 1 person, how can GT care for all of them in a GYM? . So in light of the above, newsflash. ALL the large facilities in this area are "unprepared". Don't fool yourselves. Just go into any of them and ask where they would put 150+ people on no notice, and have the needs of those people met to a livable standard. There is no place.

deeriggs 3 years, 2 months ago

Garden Terrace is a non-profit organization, sponsored by the Brethren Baptist Church United in Wenatchee. It is not run by a private company as some posters have said. It is also not an assisted living facility, according to its administrator Terry Adams. Garden Terrace is a retirement apartment facility. Dee Riggs, Wenatchee World reporter

Seven 3 years, 2 months ago

MItch Torrel....Great job!!!!!....Wenatchee is proud of you!!!! Go WILD!

momoftwo 3 years, 2 months ago

girlfawkes, I will anxiously await word from Highgate House, Blossom Valley, and Colonial Vista personnel on their emergency evacuation procedures. I'm sure state law requires this. And, if state law does require emergency evacuation procedure in place, then all staff should be trained in such, no matter how inconvenient or unworkable it might be in real life.

And, I also somewhat disagree with Shelby, who thinks it was okay to have residents stay put when a fire alarm was going off. The only thing that makes this okay at all is that they were very close to exits, so when time came to actually move them outside, there were no major challenges.

But how many of the smoke inhalation injuries could have been minimized or prevented if someone had taken the alarm seriously from the beginning, instead of waiting? One resident with serious injuries, and you were all very lucky it wasn't worse.

Yes, it would be a nightmare trying to escort all the residents from the upper floors, especially considering many of the mobility issues that we know are present. But that is something that has to be at the front of your thought processes when you work in an assisted living facility in the first place. You can't just hope the unthinkable never happens, you have to be prepared. And even if that requires transportation to the nearest school gymnasium, as long as my loved one is safe and NOT in a building that's on fire, it would be okay with me. Once the residents are evacuated, then the families or the red cross can pitch in to find temporary housing. But let's get them to a safe location first, please.

I give high marks to the clinic for sending triage units to the site, to the Red Cross, and to the fire departments all 'round, to the churches that supplied meals, and to all of the citizens who pitched in to help when it was needed.

momoftwo 3 years, 2 months ago

FYI, the pertinent information on fire evacuation procedures starts at 404.2.2 on this page, linked from the Washington State Administrative Codes site:

http://apps.leg.wa.gov/wac/default.aspx?cite=51-54-0400

Kellie 3 years, 2 months ago

I can't believe some of you think Spring is a hero... "We got as far as we could and then a fireman was yelling at us to get out. He was freaking out we were still there and in the building with all of the smoke. It was a very erie thing to see." Obviously she wasn't supposed to be there, that is what the firefighters are trained for, she was probably a nuisance because that firefighter was worried about her, rather then the helpless people in their apartments. There is a reason they are trained, you are not.

wenatcheemom33 3 years, 2 months ago

Seriously! Anyone that would go into a burning building risking their lives for the safety of others is a hero in my book. I wonder if you would have said that if she had helped one of your loved ones out of that building. She's not wonder woman but she did an honorable deed. Give her that.

Kellie 3 years, 2 months ago

Of coure. She did have some guts to do what she did. But the firemen were getting everyone out of the building, no need to go running into it, and cause more chaos and confusion. She did a good thing, but I think it was irresponsible.

Kellie 3 years, 2 months ago

Or maybe... there weren’t enough firemen there.... ;)

Mommyofthree 3 years, 2 months ago

I am wondering why most if not all had family they could go home with? There should be a plan...plan and simple! i am sure they have plans in place for the Toyota Center if it was to catch on fire! There should always be a plan for things like this! Especially since they have had previous alarms in the past. I have to disagree with Girlfawkes! Those people deserve to have a plan in cases like this! Families should be notified in an emergency. 150 people isn't that many people to find a place for. Red cross, other assisted living facilites, churches, chruch familes...etc. Like I said before....there should always be a plan and training is a MUST! If you're working with the public especially elderly that need assistance, you should be trained in every emergency possible! What is there was an earthquake?

Peggy 3 years, 2 months ago

Or just quite possibly she was there BEFORE the firefighters arrived. Thanks to all those who helped and didn't just sit in their cars and watch...

Peggy 3 years, 2 months ago

Come on folks, this is not assisted living. It is an apartment house; did you not read what Dee Riggs wrote in her posting at 10:17? How many of you have ever lived in a large apartment house or have rented a place? Did you have to provide the landlord with a contact person? I don't recall that ever being a requirement to rent. Please, use common sense and be realistic here.

Kellie 3 years, 2 months ago

Yes, because the firefighters were not the ones yelling at them to get out, right?

Caitstoppable 3 years, 2 months ago

I'd like to say that I'm really proud of all the employees from Blossom Valley and Blossom Creek. They came to GT with their facilities bus to help take GT residents to the hotels. Everyone there was exceptional and are amazing people. I'm also very proud to be considered part of their team. You guys are great!

JasonV 3 years, 2 months ago

Umwronganswer They were told to stay put until the fire was confirmed. They had some one check out to make sure that there was a fire and not burnt toast. which being a resident there, I have witness before It was with in a couple of minutes that they were told to evacuate. In any emergency, there are thing that can be improved, but this in my opinion is not one of them.

momagirl2ababyboy2005 3 years, 2 months ago

Well come to find out not everyone is fine. The lady in picture 11 finally got out last night and was taken to Central Washington Hospital were they started to treat her for smoke inhalation but then they ended up admitting her and having to rush her to surgery because she had 2 massive heart attacks one right after the other. And she ended up dying this morning.

DianaC 3 years, 2 months ago

Mary - can you provide more info about what you saw with the sprinkler system? You say they were going off and got you wet. In most standard systems, only the sprinkler heads in the immediate vicinity of the fire should have activated (it's not like TV). I'm curious if the building was fully sprinklered or only certain areas; a good system should have stopped or slowed the fire much better than the reports indicate. I'm a big supporter of fire sprinkler codes, but they are only as good as their design and maintenance.

Seacobra 3 years, 2 months ago

Just an FYI My mother lives there and they did just enact a smoking ban that went into effect Mar 1st. Who knows the real reason just glad that it wasn't worse than it was. It is tough to control chaos people always find a way to complain. Hell most people are confused when there are more than 1 car at a 4 way stop now think about 150 old or handicap people trying to get out of a building.......

UhWrongAnswer 3 years, 2 months ago

Jason verbeck : though I understand where your coming from, you said "with in a couple of minutes that they were told to evacuate."

That was after they confirmed the fire.

Sorry, but a few minutes is ALOT of time. In addition, a few minutes of time and a fire can travel and get hot very quick. As most of the people there would've seen.

I stand by my early post; they should've started the evacuation at the sound of the alarm.

DianaC 3 years, 2 months ago

Thanks Mary, and thanks for stepping in to do what you felt needed to be done. Others might criticize, but I know you were driven to do what you felt was right in your heart. Hopefully some good will come from this. If nothing else more attention to the need for emergency planning and practicing evacuation drills, for those families who experienced this tragedy first hand and lived to hold their loved ones again.

3 years, 2 months ago

This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.

3 years, 2 months ago

This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.

3 years, 2 months ago

This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.

Morris 3 years, 2 months ago

My family member chose to live at GT despite my encouragement to live in a facility closer to my home west of the Cascades. That was her choice. Despite pointing out concerns about the facility in general, she chose to live there. To that end, an action plan was essentially established and when released from the hospital, she stayed the night with another family member who lives near the Courthouse. When I drove in yesterday after work, I assessed what was needed and my family member was able to return to her apartment last night. I observed that the HVAC system continued to operate as the fire on the fourth floor continued. This pumped smoke to the fifth and six floors, filling them with smoke. Each floor of GT East has two pull stations at end end of the hallway, one fire extinguisher in the center of the hallway along with one audible alarm/strobe in the center of the hallway. While there are presumably smoke detectors in each of the rooms, I did confirm that they are not monitored and simply for the benefit of the resident occupying the unit. I spoke with my family member and confirmed that there has been no formal practiced evacuation of the staff during her residency there. Again, it does not appear that a cohesive evacuation plan was enacted and residents eating in the dining area were told to remain pending confirmation. Oddly enough, when I went to look for the administrator to ask some questions, he disappeared. He was behind closed doors for most of the time I was there. Most of the doors to the living units in the fourth through sixth floors are damaged by the necessary forced entry by fire personnel as they went searching. Many doors will not be repaired until next week at the earliest (as confirmed by the sole maintenance tech for the building). Again, my thanks to those that helped. And again, my appeal to investigators to carefully look both at the building and the standard and emergency operations plans (or lack thereof) GT has in place.

tazgirl 3 years, 2 months ago

It is a sad day when a fireman was outside of my mother Elsie Reiswig's window and did not remove her from the building. My mother was on the phone to my sister who was in Hawaii for a wedding asking for help because she could not breath. My sister was trying to direct my mother's recsue from miles away by phone. My sister's son Ernie was already at the building. My sister called Ernie to ask him to send a fireman to get our mother out of the building because she was having trouble breathing. Ernie sent the fireman to rescue my mother. You can see in the photo that my mother was afraid. Fear is etched all over her face. I do not know the reason, but the fireman did not take her out of the building. I would like to know why. The fireman apparently came back and said that she was fine. I would also like to know why Garden Terrace staff did not evacuate the residents to the next door building. I would also like to know why Garden Terrace doesn't have an evacuation plan in place. My mother's room was only about 4 doors from the entrance to that other building. Why were they told to stay in their rooms and open their windows? The ICU doctor told my sister that my mother died from smoke inhalation which caused Hypoxcemia which caused an MI (myocardial infarction) not from a heart attack caused from stress. My mother may have been old, but she wasn't useless. She was loved by her family. Don't let her death be for nothing. Ask the state to require that they put an evacuation plan in place so any future deaths will hopefully not be one of your loved relatives.