State faults senior homes in Eaton fire

Reports cite Altadena and Pasadena facilities for leaving residents as flames neared.

- BY GRACE TOOHEY

ETHAN SWOPE Associated Press A RESIDENT is evacuated during the Eaton fire. The state probes were triggered partly by Times reporting.

Forgotten amid the frantic evacuation of two senior care facilities, according to state investigators, the elderly women were left in immediate danger as the smoke and flames of the Eaton fire drew closer.

In two reports published by the California Department of Social Services, investigators describe the harrowing circumstances of three women who were left behind in the assisted living facilities during the deadly Jan. 7 fire.

While the women were ultimately rescued, state investigators cited both facilities for troubling lapses in care and ordered the homes to increase their emergency planning and training. Both senior care facilities have appealed the findings.

The investigations — which were triggered partly by reporting from The Times — have raised further questions about how officials prepared for and responded to the deadly firestorm, particularly with respect to elderly and disabled evacuees.

Laura Mosqueda, a professor of family medicine and geriatrics at USC’s Keck School of Medicine, said the state’s findings “demonstrate many of the problems” that senior care advocates have long called on officials to address.

“Absolutely it was chaotic because of the fires, and absolutely [assisted living facilities] have a responsibility to have emergency plans and competent leadership who can follow through,” Mosqueda said. “To evacuate and not have a complete list and know you've gotten everybody out... is not OK.”

Nineteen people died in the Eaton fire, 18 of them in west Altadena, where county officials failed to issue prompt alerts about the growing threat. None, however, were residents of a senior care facility.