A late-night fire likely caused by an unattended candle forced the evacuation of nearly 30 residents from a Lauderdale Lakes assisted living home, according to Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue. Two people were hospitalized.
A little before 11 p.m., around 50 firefighters responded to the fire at St Joseph’s Residence at 3485 NW 30th St.
The firefighters encountered smoke and a small fire in a room on the third floor, Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue Chief Michael Kane said in a media release. The building’s automatic sprinkler system helped prevent the fire from spreading beyond the room.
“It is believed that the fire had started from an unattended candle,” Kane said. “Thankfully, the automatic sprinklers in the building suppressed the fire.”
The firefighters evacuated 30 residents on the second, third, and fourth floors of the building because of smoke and water intrusion from the sprinklers, Kane said. They relocated to other parts of the building.
Two residents required transport to the hospital for “undisclosed complaints related to the fire,” Kane said, but their conditions are stable and they are “expected to be OK.”
