No one injured in Shorewood Timbers fire
By Brian Stanley and Tony Graf bstanley@stmedianetwork.com January 31, 2013 6:03PM
Maps
Updated: March 2, 2013 12:10PM
SHOREWOOD — No one was injured Thursday afternoon when a fire struck the Timbers of Shorewood retirement center, authorities said.
The blaze set off an alarm at 4:09 p.m. in a boiler room on the second floor of the building, 1100 N. River Road, Troy Fire Protection District Chief Steve Engledow said. One wing was evacuated, but none of the residents or staff required medical attention, he said.
The Timbers is an independent-living, assisted-living and short-term retirement community. The fire was confined to the mechanical room, said Faith Ann Varga, executive director of The Timbers. The staff carried out a well-established evacuation procedure, she said.
“We have drills all the time. The employees know exactly what to do, and everybody works together,” she said.
The wing that houses the mechanical room was evacuated, with the staff leading 40 to 45 residents into a restaurant area off the main lobby, Varga said.
She said staff members visited every apartment in the building, telling residents to stay in their apartments until the investigation of the fire was complete.
Jean Thuringer, a longtime resident of The Timbers, was in the library when she heard the alarm. The staff evacuated the library and led residents to the restaurant area, she said.
“I’m just grateful that everybody’s fine, that everything’s well. That’s the main thing,” Varga said.
