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Thursday, May 21, 2009 9:05 AM Family care home to be rebuilt Applewood residents displaced By Antonio Velarde | Times Staff Writer ELM CITY -- "Overwhelmed." That's how Gail Jones, owner of Applewood Assisted Living, has been feeling in the days after a fire Saturday night burned her business, displacing 42 residents and leaving several without possessions. She and her staff have since then been digging through charred bedrooms looking for personal belongings, visiting residents now housed in Wilson and Rocky Mount and otherwise working on repairing the facility for a reopening. "It's been a madhouse," Jones said Wednesday. Area fire departments responded just before 11 p.m. Saturday to 416 N. Parker St., where they found the assisted living facility spewing clouds of smoke, with flames shooting from the roof. Residents were evacuated by nursing staff without injury before firefighters arrived. Authorities believe the fire, which destroyed part of the facility, was caused by someone smoking in bed. Jones said that residents have been placed in The Wilson House in Wilson and three other retirement homes in Nash County, where they will stay until the facility is repaired. She said she has visited several of the residents since the fire, and that each resident who went to a new retirement home was accompanied by a staff member. The facility, Jones said, is partially destroyed, but repairs are expected to begin as early as Friday. She said she expects to have the facility rebuilt in three months. Jones, who also owns family care homes in Franklin and Wake counties, said the residents at the home are in need of clothing. She said anyone willing to donate items can contact her at 813-8416. Jones said that in the wake of the fire, several people in the community helped her and residents, including First Baptist Church of Elm City, along with an area day care and neighbors. It was amazing, she said, how so many people, many of whom she had never met, came to the facility's aid. "There were so many, people I didn't even know," Jones said. She said she would also like to commend the staff, especially the six staff members who were at the facility that night and who helped evacuate the 42 residents. "Thank God no one was hurt," she said. She said she doesn't know exactly how the fire started. But she did state that smoking inside the facility is against state regulations concerning adult care facilities. She said the facility is going to be built better than before, and that residents are eager to come back. "They're ready to come home," Jones said. avelarde@wilsontimes.com | 265-7868 |
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Pineridge Resident said...
Glad to hear that Applewood plans to rebuild. Just make sure that Applewood's janitorial/custodial staff maintains the "side yard" of its property along Daniel Drive. That means mowing the side yard lawn along with the front yard and picking up the trash (soda cans, paper cups, napkins) that residents pile up under the rear window next to the dumpster or throw away on the street that litter that side yard. It's not as noticeable in the Spring and Summer when the trees and bushes are in bloom. But, Fall and Winter it looks horrible. That's the main entrance to the Pineridge Subdivision. When the Wilson Times does a follow up story after the rebuild, I plan to post these comments again under that article. Again, glad to hear that Applewood will be rebuilt.
Friday, May 22, 2009 at 11:52 AM
Glad to hear that Applewood plans to rebuild. Just make sure that Applewood's janitorial/custodial staff maintains the "side yard" of its property along Daniel Drive. That means mowing the side yard lawn along with the front yard and picking up the trash (soda cans, paper cups, napkins) that residents pile up under the rear window next to the dumpster or throw away on the street that litter that side yard. It's not as noticeable in the Spring and Summer when the trees and bushes are in bloom. But, Fall and Winter it looks horrible. That's the main entrance to the Pineridge Subdivision. When the Wilson Times does a follow up story after the rebuild, I plan to post these comments again under that article. Again, glad to hear that Applewood will be rebuilt.
Friday, May 22, 2009 at 11:52 AM
