By Stan Szpytek, GB RCCS Associate Consultant
Incidents like the one that will be summarized in this article emphasize the importance of emergency planning for all types of ministries and occupancies including office buildings, colleges, universities, retreat centers, convents and monasteries. It is critical to assess potential hazards and perils both inside and outside of the built-environment and
Incidents like the one that will be summarized in this article emphasize the importance of emergency planning for all types of ministries and occupancies including office buildings, colleges, universities, retreat centers, convents and monasteries. It is critical to assess potential hazards and perils both inside and outside of the built-environment and contiguous property. Conducting a Hazard Vulnerability Assessment (HVA) and reviewing it annually can help Christian Brothers Services members assess their operations and properly plan for an inevitable emergency or disaster.
The following is a summary of a real incident that occurred at a healthcare facility. The question you should ask your team after reading this information is, “What if this happened near our facility?”
It was a normal day at a health care facility in suburban Chicago in late June 2021; until it wasn’t. The fire department received a call for a natural gas leak just before noon caused by a cable company utility crew trenching along a state highway. Upon arriving on the scene, a battalion chief and engine company from the local fire department encountered a high pressure natural gas leak that was filling the atmosphere with a potentially explosive vapor mixture. All that was needed was a specific concentration of air and gas within its explosive limits, along with an ignition source to cause a major explosion. Within a hundred yards of the leaking gas line was a fully occupied care center downwind from the incident. Additionally, multiple residential properties and businesses were in immediate proximity to the natural gas leak.
Traffic in all directions around the leak was quickly shutdown causing significant congestion in the entire area. Extra resources were requested by first-responders to focus on the threat that the leak posed to the nearby nursing home. While first-responders had to focus on the impact this potentially deadly scenario had on the entire community around the gas leak, they knew that nursing homes are required to have emergency plans in place to address a variety of internal and external hazards that could impact their operations. The fire department expected that the nursing home would be in emergency management mode, addressing the immediate threat.
Upon entering the facility, the fire department was not disappointed as they learned staff had already taken measures to mitigate a potential explosion within the building. Maintenance staff had already shut down air conditioning units to limit gas-laden vapors from entering the structure. Even with HVAC system turned off, firefighters detected elevated levels of natural gas within the building. The battalion chief, who was the Incident Commander, requested more firefighting equipment as well as a fleet of ambulances to the scene through the area’s mutual-aid system in case the facility needed to be evacuated. They put a community center operated by the city near the facility on standby as a potential re-assembly location. They also brought buses to the scene to accommodate ambulatory residents if evacuation of the facility was required.
Fire departments around the nation are aware that ministries and occupancies like those within the Christian Brothers Services portfolio develop comprehensive plans to prepare, respond, and recover from adverse events while maintaining continuity of care and services. These emergency protocols are designed to promote levels of readiness within the organization that first-responders rely on during an emergency or disaster.
Through the use of an unified command system between the multiple fire departments, several law enforcement agencies and the affected nursing home, it was determined that relocating residents to the opposite side of the facility, away from the leak was the best initial strategy to implement as gas company personnel worked to cap the leak. They monitored air quality inside of the facility on a continuous basis throughout this protracted event. If levels greater than 5% of the lower explosive limit (LEL) of natural gas was detected, the fire department’s Incident Commander would have ordered complete evacuation of the facility.
The gas leak occurred on a day when environmental conditions included seasonably hot temperatures with high humidity along with intermittent storms. Outside weather conditions directly impacted the LEL readings that the fire department was monitoring inside the facility. During periods when it was raining or storming, the levels detected inside of the building lessened. When the weather cleared and winds calmed down, elevated LEL levels were detected in the building.
If you are a religious community that owns/operates a regulated healthcare facility that receives federal funding from agencies like CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services), it is important to understand that compliance does not take a break, especially when a facility is in the midst of a crisis. During this emergency, regulators from the state’s department of health arrived at the facility to monitor other health and safety issues, including safe operating temperatures within the building. There was some concern that temperatures in the facility were rising because the HVAC system was shut down to limit in-coming outside air near the ruptured pipeline.
+The incident ended approximately 6 ½ hours after the first emergency call was received. Through a well-coordinated effort by first responders and the staff of the facility, collaborative decisions were made and actions implemented through the use of “unified command” to help ensure the safety of the residents and all occupants of the building.
Fire departments, emergency medical services (EMS) and law enforcement agencies that respond to emergencies expect private organizations like those members covered by the Risk Pooling Trust to have an understanding of the Incident Command System (ICS) and incorporate those specific management processes into their Emergency Operations Plans (EOP). ICS is the same emergency management framework used by first responders, hospitals, nursing homes, schools and other well-prepared organizations around the nation to handle all types of emergencies and disasters.
While the initial on-set of this particular incident was a surprise to everyone involved, the “possibility” of such an event should never be a surprise to any of the community’s stakeholders including religious ministries that operate within range of multiple hazards that exist in every community. This includes underground utility pipes, overhead electrical transmission lines, railroad crossings, busy transportation routes, flight paths into airports, industrial complexes, refineries, electric sub-stations, mining operations, shopping malls, banks, government buildings and any other type of occupancy or potential peril that could impact normal operations.
Religious organizations and their ministries need to know the hazards that exist within their communities by conducting a comprehensive HVA and updating it annually so their operation is ready for the next emergency incident. Additionally, a practical understanding of the Incident Command System and knowing how it is used is essential to help safeguard the people, including the vulnerable populations some ministries are given the privilege and responsibility to serve.
Stan Szpytek is the president of Fire and Life Safety, Inc. and is a Gallagher Bassett RCCS Associate Consultant based in Mesa, Arizona. Stan has worked on many projects for Christian Brothers through the past two decades and is also the Life Safety/Disaster Planning Consultant for the Arizona Health Care Association, California Association of Health Facilities (CAHF) and Utah Health Care Association. Szpytek is a former deputy fire chief and fire marshal with more than 40 years of experience in life safety compliance and emergency preparedness.
