Fire Forces Evacuation of Hundreds From Hospital

MARTINEZ, CA —No one was injured in a fire this afternoon at a hospital in Martinez that prompted the evacuation of several hundred people, a fire marshal with the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District said.

The fire was reported at 2:06 p.m. in a second-floor boiler room near the emergency rooms of the Contra Costa Regional Medical Center at 2500 Alhambra Ave.

The fire affected the entire hospital but did not affect the emergency rooms because the emergency rooms are isolated from other parts of the hospital, fire Marshal Robert Marshall said.

But as of 3:40 p.m. the emergency room was not accepting any new patients.

Each hospital room is isolated from other rooms in case something like this happens, Marshall said.

All non-essential staff members were evacuated and patients who could have been affected by smoke from the fire were moved to safe areas, Marshall said.

Firefighters also isolated smoky areas from the rest of the hospital and the fire was extinguished at about 2:45 p.m. Firefighters found the fire was fueled by one of two fuel sources, either natural gas or diesel fuel.

Firefighters haven't pinpointed which fuel was burning, Marshall said.

The hospital can run on both fuels in case one source is cut off for some reason such as a natural disaster.
The damage to the boiler room was minimal. The cause is under investigation.

— An earlier report from Bay City News incorrectly stated the was at the Martinez Health Center, located at the same address.

— Bay City News; Image via Shutterstock