Sunday, January 4, 2015

FALSE ALARMS ROUTINE AT TEXAS SENIOR COMPLEX WHERE FIRE KILLED 5 SENIOR CITIZENS



False Alarms Routine At Texas Senior Complex Where Fire Killed 5 senior citizens


SAN ANTONIO (January 4, 2014) Survivors of a fire at the Wedgwood senior-living complex near San Antonio that killed five people say false alarms were routine at the 11-story building.

The residents say they felt no urgency when they first heard the fire alarm shortly after 6 a.m. on Dec. 28, the San Antonio Express-News reported in a story published Sunday.
The five residents who died where in their 70s and 80s.

Three of them were on the third floor and two were on the seventh floor.
At least 20 other residents were sent to hospitals.

A sixth resident died two days after the fire, but officials haven’t confirmed that the fire contributed to her death.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. 

The complex was built in 1965 and had no sprinkler system.
Officials say the last fire inspection took place in September and that the building had no history of fires.


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Five confirmed dead in fire at the wedgwood high-rise senior complex IN SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS

Updated: Sunday, December 28 2014, 11:07 AM CST By Gary Cooper News 4 San Antonio Facebook SAN ANTONIO –
Five confirmed dead in a high-rise apartment fire in Castle Hills on Sunday. At least 150 firefighters from various engine companies around San Antonio were called to the three-alarm blaze at the Wedgwood Senior Apartments located at 6701 Blanco Road in Castle Hills around 6:30 a.m.
Rescue efforts were particularly challenging because many residents in the retirement complex have mobility and impairment issues.
At least 3 people were injured and taken to local hospitals, one critically.
At least 75 residents had to be evacuated and taken to a shelter at Churchill High School, 12049 Blanco Road.
 Officials say the entire third floor of the apartment complex was gutted.