Sprinkler Breaks, 59 Evacuated From Dallas Township, Pa. Care Center

Jan. 28--DALLAS TWP. -- A fire sprinkler system break forced 59 residents of the Back Mountain Care Center on state Route 309 in Dallas Township to be evacuated Sunday afternoon.

The ceiling partly collapsed on the second floor of the personal care facility's south wing and there was water damage downstairs, Dallas fire Chief and Back Mountain Regional Emergency Management Coordinator Harry Vivian said.

Shortly before 3 p.m. emergency responders arrived at the facility, located across the street from the Country Club Shopping Center. All 59 residents were first moved to another sector of the building to keep warm, then safely relocated to the Dallas Middle School, which served as a temporary shelter, Vivian said.

He said emergency personnel got residents their medications, wheelchairs and other necessities, and they were in "pretty good shape" by Sunday evening.

Dallas Township Emergency Management Coordinator Alan Pugh said the residents were being transferred from the Dallas Middle School to other facilities or to stay with their families.

Emergency Management of Northeastern Pennsylvania and the Wyoming Valley chapter of the American Red Cross brought cots. The Red Cross also provided food, Pugh said.

Management at the Back Mountain Care Center was alerted by an alarm that there was low pressure in the sprinkler system, Vivian said. He didn't know what caused the break.

Water and electricity had to be turned off in the facility, and Vivian said it will probably be a couple of days before residents can return.

"They're not going to be able to reside here until everything is fixed and the state does their inspections," he said.

The Back Mountain Care Center was formerly known as Mountainside Manor when it was under the ownership of bankrupt New Hope Personal Care Homes Inc.

A state inspection in September 2011 disclosed deficiencies at both Mountainside Manor and another New Hope facility, Pennswood Manor in Scranton, which has since closed. A state official found an infestation of flies and a patient afflicted with an infectious skin condition at Mountainside Manor, according to The Citizens' Voice archives.

The Back Mountain Care Center is now owned by Scranton-based Infinity Management Group Inc.

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