Baltimore County officials reported that a 65-year-old woman is expected to survive critical injuries suffered yesterday in a fire at an Edgemere senior living complex.
Three other patients suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the fire at St. Luke’s Place, 2800 block of Lodge Farm Road in Edgemere.
Residents from nine apartment units were displaced.
Baltimore County Police fire investigators have determined that the fire was accidental. The fire began when the victim — the patient who suffered critical injuries — had been smoking on the sofa while using oxygen.
A fire ignited and trailed along the oxygen tubing, burning the patient and igniting the couch where she was sitting.
Medical oxygen is enriched, leading to a greatly increased fire hazard because oxygen makes fires burn hotter and spread faster.
Smoking should not occur in homes with patients on medical oxygen.
The St. Luke’s Place fire was dispatched at 10:25 a.m. for a report of a fire alarm.
Fire crews found the victim on the fourth floor of the complex, in critical condition.
She was treated by EMS personnel, who transported her to the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center.
The complex’s sprinkler system quickly extinguished the fire.
