More than 100 residents of a Rockland nursing and rehabilitation facility will be evacuated after a three-alarm fire broke out in the building Saturday afternoon, Rockland Fire Chief Scott Duffey said.
Duffey said all 102 residents of the Webster Park Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center at 56 Webster St. in Rockland will need to be evacuated.
The fire was reported at approximately 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 29, he said. When crews arrived on scene they found fire on the third floor of the building that was "being held in check by" the automatic sprinkler system and the crews "very quickly were able to get water on the fire and finish putting it out" but there was "very heavy smoke," Duffey said at a press conference on scene Saturday afternoon.
He said all residents from the third floor were "safely evacuated" via stairs in front and back with "no injuries to any of the patients or fire service personnel."
Duffey said the fire department is working with the staff of the facility "who have been incredible throughout this process" to determine where each patient will be taken.
"We're going to do our best not to overwhelm any of the local hospitals" and hopefully will be able to take the residents to other area nursing homes instead, he said.
What caused the fire?
Duffey said the fire originated in a common area by the nurses station.
"We don't know a cause at this time," he said at the press conference Saturday afternoon. That will be investigated," he said.
How many residents were on third floor?
Duffey said 22 residents were on the third floor. Fire personnel carried them, for the most part, down the stairwells to the second and first floors "where they'd be safe from the smoke," he said.
The elevators could not be used due to possible electrical issues and "overall safety," Duffey said.
He estimated it took about 40 minutes to evacuate them.
Duffey said the challenge was "moving patients that are bed-ridden, that are elderly, a little bit less mobile than your younger population."
All 22 of the residents were "triaged" after they were evacuated from the third floor and, fortunately, none showed signs of smoke inhalation, Duffey said.
Duffey praised the nursing home staff's handling of the emergency.
"The staff has been extremely cooperative and they are really the true heroes, moving patients before we even got here," Duffey said.
When will nursing home reopen?
Duffey said the facility sustained water and smoke damage, with water "cascading" from the third floor all the way to the first, and "the facility will be shut down for some time."
What do we know about the condition of the nursing home?
Duffey said the Fire Department does quarterly inspections of the nursing home and they are "an excellent facility."
The nursing home was last inspected by the state on Jan. 28, 2025, and received an overall score of 119 out of 132 "in all five categories in its last three surveys." The other two surveys were Oct. 31, 2023, and June 30, 2021. "The number of deficiencies not met as a result of complaint investigations is: 0. The facility's score is 119 after adjustment for scope and severity. 31% of all facilities had a score of 119 or lower. The statewide average facility score is 116," according to the Health and Human Services inspection.
How old is the building?
The building was constructed in 1968 and is valued at $6,725,500, according to the Rockland Assessor's Office records. It has 49,769 square feet of net living area, according to the records and sits on 1.51 acres of land.
The building was last sold in December 2013, for $2.279 million to Webster Park Property LLC in Brick, NJ.
The building is two separate buildings, connected by a walkway.
How can relatives of nursing home residents locate their loved ones?
The Rockland Fire Department did not have information immediately available as of 7 p.m. Saturday regarding how relatives of nursing home residents who are being evacuated can locate their loved ones.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
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