Seniors wait outside while the smoke was cleared
CARMEL – There were some anxious moments for firefighters Wednesday evening when a report of a structure fire at the Gleneida Court senior housing complex in Carmel was broadcast on fire radios countywide.
Recalling the early morning conflagration in November 2016 at Hughson Commons in Carmel when dozens of seniors escaped flames with only the clothing on their backs, Carmel Assistant Chief Robert Lipton, Jr. sounded a general alarm for his department while summoning mutual aid from the Brewster and Mahopac fire departments.
The emergency responders were fortunate this time since when crews raced up to a second-floor apartment they found food burning on a stove which sent smoke throughout the unit and into a common area that activated automatic smoke alarms.
Chief Lipton commended the elderly for “following the rules and immediately evacuating when the building’s fire alarms began to sound. The residents acted properly. Whenever a report is confirmed of a fire in a senior citizens residence your heart skips a beat knowing that many of the elderly are in wheelchairs and use canes and walkers for assistance.”
The fire was extinguished with minor damage to the apartment but no damage to the remainder of the building. Fire crews were at the scene for 90 minutes.
Assisting at the scene were members of the Carmel Police Department, Putnam Battalion 15 Coordinator Doug Casey and a representative of the Putnam Bureau of Emergency Services.
No injuries were reported.
