At least 12 people hurt in care center fire

By Janene Pieters on July 31, 2018 - 08:46
Firefighting_in_Russia_in_December_2010
Fire hose (Photo: Vitaliy Ragulin / Wikimedia Commons). Fire hose (Photo: Vitaliy Ragulin / Wikimedia Commons)

At least 12 people were injured during a fire in the Heycop home and care center in Breukelen on Monday evening. Eleven people were taken to UMC Utrecht's emergency hospital. The victims sustained various injuries, most of them smoke inhalation related, a spokesperson for the local safety office Veiligheidsregio Utrecht said to ANP. 

The fire started in one of the homes in the building. It was quickly under control, but emergency services kept evacuating the building due to smoke. Shelter was given to evacuated residents in the Pauluskerk in Breukelen. Older residents who can not walk were taken to nearby care center De Aa. Some were allowed to return home later, but the residents of 114 homes had to spend the night elsewhere.

The Red Cross sent an emergency assistance team to Heycop at the request of the safety office. The Red Cross team provided first aid to people who sustained minor injuries and supported the regular emergency services. Another team of eight people was deployed to help the evacuated residents where they were sheltered. 

The victims taken to the emergency hospital were transferred to other departments or nursing homes during the night. The severity of their injuries is unknown. 

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