More Than 70 Residents At Oakmont Nursing Home Evacuated After Crews Cleaning Clogged Sink Cause Chemical Reaction

OAKMONT, Pa. (KDKA) – Seventy-six residents at Oakmont Nursing and Rehab Center were evacuated Thursday afternoon. 

Allegheny County Emergency Services Chief Matt Brown says maintenance employees poured a drain cleaner into a clogged slop sink, which had a reaction and started fuming.

“The cause of the chemical odor was a reaction caused by the use of a drain cleaner and other chemicals to unclog a sink,” Allegheny County HMRT 420 said on Facebook.

The facility chose to evacuate its residents, with Emergency Services implementing its mass casualty incident protocol to help evacuate 76 residents.

Port Authority brought in two buses and operators for temporary shelter until the building is ventilated by HAZMAT and firefighters.

“MCI plan was put into effect bringing ambulances in from all over the county just to make sure we can properly care for the patients. Port Authority busses were brought in,” Asst. Chief Steve Imbarlina of Allegheny County Emergency Services.

There are no unusual meter readings, Brown says, and the facility is now being cleaned.

“They start to make sure that it is safe to reoccupy and that the air quality is just as good as the air out here,” Imbarlina said.

Officials say no one was taken to the hospital and residents were allowed back in on Thursday night.

“As a general reminder, drain cleaners are harsh chemicals and should be used cautiously under close supervision,” Allegheny County HMRT 420 said on Facebook.

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More Than 70 Residents At Oakmont Nursing Home Evacuated After Crews Cleaning Clogged Sink Cause Chemical Reaction

A California nursing home was evacuated after its staff didn't show up

Ambulance personnel get ready to evacuate patients from the Magnolia Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Riverside, California.

By Cheri Mossburg

(CNN) Dozens of patients from a nursing home in Southern California were evacuated to other centers Wednesday after employees stopped showing up for work, officials say.

Magnolia Rehabilitation and Skilled Nursing Center in Riverside, California has been hit hard by coronavirus, with at least 34 of 84 patients and five staff members testing positive, according to a news release from Riverside County Public Health Department.

Wednesday is the second day in a row employees didn't show up to care for patients. Thirty-three nurses were brought in by Riverside University Health and Kaiser Permanente to fill in on Tuesday, the release states.

Noting that rehab centers and nursing facilities present a particular challenge due to the age and health conditions of the residents, the county's health department said the centers receiving patients will follow strict Covid-19 containment procedures.

Riverside County has seen at least 1,016 confirmed cases, and 28 people have died, according to the county's public health department.

CNN is continuing to try to reach Magnolia and its staff members.

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A California nursing home was evacuated after its staff didn't show up

Texas nursing home evacuated after Harvey when a gun is drawn

The nursing home at Lake Arthur Place was in rough shape when rescuers arrived. The hallways smelled of feces. There was an old woman trembling in a wheelchair. Her feet were dangling in almost a foot of floodwater.

Harvey, then a tropical storm, was already affecting Port Arthur, a coastal refinery city in Texas.

Ben Husser, 45, had arrived along with other members of the “Cajun Navy,” a group of military veterans and fishermen, to help rescue locals.

“What’s going on here?” Husser asked a nurse. “Why is she shaking? Is she cold?”

Husser found Jeff Rosetta, the nursing home’s administrator. Despite Husser’s offer of a ride out on several empty boats waiting outside, Rosetta refused.

“You don’t understand, I can’t give these people to you,” Rosetta said, according to Husser’s account. “I can only give them to the National Guard.”

Rosetta then ordered Husser to leave. Husser refused. The discussion came to blows, and Husser drew a gun.

“I had to do what I had to do,” Husser said later. “We had to beat the crap out of Jeff — at least, I did.”

Two Port Arthur police officers arrived at the facility and determined the place should be evacuated.

To read the full story of what happened, and why nursing homes try not to evacuate during storms if at all possible, visit myAJC.com.

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Texas nursing home evacuated after Harvey when a gun is drawn