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appalachiablue

(41,053 posts)
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 01:13 PM Sep 2018

State Says Seniors Were Abandoned During California Wildfire

Source: Associated Press

By Jonathan J. Cooper, Associated Press, 8 hrs. ago.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Staff at two senior care centers abandoned residents during an evacuation as wildfires swept through Northern California last October, state officials said Thursday as they moved to revoke licenses from the Santa Rosa facilities and their top administrators. Nobody in either facility died.

A Department of Social Services complaint says more than 20 people would have died when a dementia facility burned to the ground if family members and emergency responders hadn't evacuated them after all staff left. The investigation says night staff members at Villa Capri were not trained in emergency procedures and had never practiced a fire drill. They could not find keys to a bus that could have sped evacuations.

At least three residents were never evacuated from another facility, Varenna, and workers who found them the next morning lied about it, the investigation found. Both care centers are owned by Oakmont Senior Living, which called the allegations unfounded.

The night of the fire, "we voluntarily began evacuating residents after we were repeatedly unable to reach emergency authorities on clogged 911 phone lines. We never received an official evacuation order from emergency authorities," the owner said in a statement. "All 418 residents were safely evacuated," Oakmont added.


Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/state-says-seniors-were-abandoned-during-california-wildfire/ar-BBMYjeY



Oakmont owns 25 senior centers in Ca. and one in Las Vegas. The state's complaint conveys a chaotic scene as flames swept into Santa Rosa overnight on Oct. 8 and 9, known as the Tubbs Fire which ultimately destroyed thousands of homes in Santa Rosa and killed dozens of people.

At Villa Capri with 62 elderly and disabled residents including 25 in the dementia unit, the night supervisor did not know evacuation plans or where to find flashlights and batteries. One staff member spent an hour unsuccessfully searching for vehicle keys.

The power went out at about 11:30 p.m., disabling electronic locks that keep patients with dementia from leaving the facility and the administrator, who was not there, instructed staff to guard the exit doors, preventing them from caring for residents, the state alleges.

After staff left, relatives of residents arrived and helped non-mobile residents "who were left stranded on the second floor." Emergency responders eventually arrived to help.


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Eliot Rosewater

(31,097 posts)
1. This is terrible, and I wish the CORP EXECS AND INVESTORS of this facility
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 01:19 PM
Sep 2018

would have been the ones expected to risk their lives for others while being paid $12 an hour or whatever ridiculous low pay it is.

No excuse for what happened, but...

drmeow

(4,995 posts)
6. That was my thought
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 02:24 PM
Sep 2018

Not that it excuses them not upholding their responsibility but it royally pisses me off that people who are expected to put their lives at risk to save others are often paid so little. Not just nursing home staff but teachers, too.

dixiegrrrrl

(60,010 posts)
2. Shades of Katrina...
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 01:20 PM
Sep 2018

and of for profit facilities that increase their bottom line by hiring unqualified help.

I would hope that Cal. re-writes their standards for care facilities.
 

elmac

(4,642 posts)
4. in a fascist, its all about me country
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 01:46 PM
Sep 2018

this kind of thing will happen more and more. Now, its not the responsibility of the under paid workers to guaranty the safety of the residents so I only place the blame on the owners and managers. As for me, and I hope all of us here, if there is a crisis in my area that would put peoples lives in danger I will offer my help to centers like this, as HRC said, it takes a village.

SWBTATTReg

(21,859 posts)
5. My god! Our seniors need our help just as much as our underage kids do...
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 02:07 PM
Sep 2018

There is no possible explanation or excuse for this to happen. NONE!

SWBTATTReg

(21,859 posts)
11. Absolutely. Thank goodness none were hurt/etc. It's too bad that events like this have to ...
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 06:18 PM
Sep 2018

happen when folks really find out what a place is like.

Leghorn21

(13,520 posts)
7. Nursing home during Harvey last year:
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 03:12 PM
Sep 2018


Just fuck whoever is allowing this degradation of my fellow humans to happen,
what else can be said

“Fry in hell for all time”, etc etc etc etc



turbinetree

(24,632 posts)
9. I have just gotta ask......................has there license been pulled, two of the places yes.....
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 04:47 PM
Sep 2018

well the response is that they will be transparent..................really, did you by chance have a plan in place for lets say wildfires..................apparently not................

https://www.mcknightsseniorliving.com/news/regulators-seek-to-revoke-licenses-over-wildfire-response-operator-says-allegations-are-unfounded/article/794200/


staff didn't give a shit, like, hey, administrator if by chance there is a wildfire, what plans do you have in place, they had no procedure in place..................... .

ROB-ROX

(767 posts)
10. THIS IS CRIMINAL
Fri Sep 7, 2018, 05:49 PM
Sep 2018

Those who are paid to take care of people and who BAILED should be imprisoned NOW. This must be investigated and CORRECTED to prevent this from occurring AGAIN. Those organizational members who were not TRAINED by their organization should not be punished, but the organization should be FINED and responsible people imprisoned. I hope this will problem will be prevented in the future and the government people responsible for reviewing facilities to ensure STANDARDS and REGULATION are maintained are fired and their pensions taken away..........JUSTICE IS REQUIRED TO PREVENT CRIMINAL PUBLIC ISSUES

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