Today, The Bellevue Hospital (TBH) was directly across the street from a scrap magnesium fire at MagReTech, located on Sandusky County Road 177.
The hospital staff, using information from local police, fire, and county emergency management agencies, implemented a Code Yellow disaster scenario in-house. As part of this procedure, staff set up a decontamination tent and was on stand-by for a possible hospital-wide evacuation.
As the scene progressed across the street, with the prevailing winds blowing the smoke away from the hospital, and with the outstanding cooperation of the local and county emergency services, an evacuation was not necessary. The hospital continued with business as usual once the “all clear” was given by both the Bellevue Fire Department and Huron County Health Department at approximately 10 a.m.
“The hospital staff prepares yearly for disaster scenarios such as today, and under the incident command model implemented this morning, staff carried out their roles properly, keeping patient safety in mind as well as the safety of the community,” said Patty Semer, Safety Officer and Vice President for Administrative Services. “We are also thankful for the coordinated efforts of all agencies involved in resolving today’s incident.”
Semer noted that hospital staff members will be taking part in a statewide disaster drill coming up in April as part of on-going training.