Miriam Rappaport?s death in a fire at an assisted living facility gave Howard County fire officials the push they needed.
“That only made us strengthen our resolve to hurry up and finish our program,” said Deputy Chief Kevin Simmons, of the fire department?s Bureau of Life Safety. “Mrs. Rappaport became our inspiration.”
Even before the February fire at Sunrise Senior Living Center in Columbia killed the 85-year-old woman, county officials had begun crafting a program for fire and life safety training at senior facilities, Simmons said. He said the county?s Department of Citizen Services contacted fire officials about creating a program.
Now, the county?s “one-of-a-kind program” addresses issues from proper fire extinguishers and lighting to evacuation plans and building codes, Simmons said. Officials also discuss what locks are best for emergency exits, smoking regulations and the need for fire drills with staff and clients six times a year, he said.
The department has delivered about eight classes, and providers from Anne Arundel and Prince George?s counties and Baltimore City have attended, he said.
Howard County?s 55-and-over population is growing, as is the development of assisted living facilities, Fire Chief Joe Herr said.
“They are accommodating an important part of our Howard County citizenship, and we need to be prepared for it,” Herr said.
There are 66 smaller assisted living facilities, with a total of 501 beds, plus eight large facilities, said Terri Hansen, housing coordinator with Citizen Services Office on Aging. The fire department training gives providers more specific expertise and creates a connection with the agency that would be responding in the case of a fire, Hansen said.
