A mock fire involving an e-bike was conducted at a seniors’ home in Glace Bay, N.S., on Tuesday. While the fire at Victoria Haven Nursing Home was only a drill, the concern it represents is real. “You’ve got to be serious about fire because it could kill you,” said John Nolan, a resident of the seniors’ complex. The mock fire – and an evacuation drill to go with it - showed residents and staff what could happen if one of the many lithium-ion charged devices in the long-term care facility were to overheat. “We did a count and surprisingly, we estimate around 150,” said Penny Campbell, director of facility and resident care, of the number of lithium-ion dependent devices in the home. That’s nearly three for each of the 54 residents living there. “When you look at staff bringing in cellphones, laptops, computers,” Campbell said. “Charging devices such as lifts, wheelchairs.” “We knew that we needed to do some training,” added Gary O’Brien, a deputy fire marshal with the Nova Scotia Fire Marshal’s Office. O’Brien and Glace Bay Volunteer Fire Chief John Chant were on hand for some practice of their own when it comes to the potential dangers. Next week - Oct. 4 to 10 - is Fire Prevention Week in Nova Scotia and once again the theme focuses on safe charging of lithium-ion battery-powered devices. “To see it come two years in a row, there is education that needs to be done and I think we are getting there,” O’Brien said. “We are not all the way.” Campbell said there has never been a fire at Victoria Haven in all of her time working at the facility. However, not all long-term care complexes in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality can say the same. In July 2022, a woman in her 60s died and another resident was hospitalized after a fire at a seniors’ complex in New Waterford, N.S., that officials said was believed to have started in the kitchen. In February 2024, shortly after Cape Breton’s historic snowstorm, a woman living in a Sydney facility died after snow and ice falling from the roof landed on a propane tank outside her room - causing an explosion. “We’ve done scenarios with residents smoking, equipment catching on fire and today was the example that we utilized lithium ion,” Campbell said. While everyone passed Tuesday’s mock test, the hope is that residents and staff are now more aware - and ready - should there be a real emergency. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
