By Kim McDarison
The Fort Atkinson Fire Department responded to a call of smoke in the building at 1531 Commonwealth Drive in Fort Atkinson Monday.
Fort Atkinson Fire Department Division Chief Mike Gerondale said the call alerting the department to smoke in the building came in at 11:45 p.m. Additionally, he said, firefighters were told that an evacuation of the building was in progress.
Gerondale said 1531 Commonwealth Drive is the address of Sienna Crest, which, according to the facility’s website, is an assisted living facility specializing in memory care.
Gerondale said that 19 patients were assisted by members of the Fort Atkinson Fire Department and the Fort Atkinson Police Department, which also arrived at the scene to help evacuate the building.
Of the 19 patients assisted, he said, 15 were moved to another facility for temporary housing while firefighters investigated the cause of the smoke. Four patients were able to shelter in place because their rooms were located away from the area in which smoke was reported and smoke was not detected in that portion of the building.
Patients who were removed from the building were taken to Reena Senior Living, which, Gerondale said, is located within two blocks of Sienna Crest. Firefighters and police officers in some cases pushed patients in wheelchairs to the Reena Senior Living facility. Others, he said, were transported by ambulance as a matter of comfort for the patients involved.
Upon investigation of the Sienna Crest building, Gerondale said, firefighters found smoke in the building’s main hallway and in a mechanicals room. No active fire or flames were found inside the building, he said, adding that a circuit breaker had been tripped, which turned the malfunctioning equipment off.
Firefighters determined that the smoke was coming from what Gerondale described as “a burned out motor on an air compressor.”
Representatives from the building’s sprinkler alarm system were called and arrived on scene to help secure the area, Gerondale said, adding that they remained at the facility for approximately 30 minutes.
Firefighters ventilated the building and then assisted in returning the patients to their rooms, Gerondale said, adding that the fire department cleared the scene at 1:37 a.m. Tuesday.
Some 19 Fort Atkinson firefighters arrived on scene to assist with transporting patients and investigating the building, Gerondale said.
Assistance at the scene was also received from the Jefferson Fire Department, he added.
Fort Atkinson Fire Department, file photo/Chris Spangler.
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