A two alarm fire blazed across the roof of St. John’s Episcopal Hospital on September 10, causing many to fear that the peninsula’s only hospital might be knocked out of commission. Thanks to the swift actions of local firefighters, however, the building was saved and damage was kept to a minimum, enabling the facility to resume functions and continue serving the peninsula.
“Thankfully, we had no fire related injuries and FDNY was able to swiftly evacuate patients and team members,” St. John’s Vice President of External Affairs, Renée Hastick-Motes, said in a statement. “It is not known, at this moment, how the fire got started but it was quickly contained and extinguished.”
“A special thank you to Governor Kathy Hochul, NYSDOH representatives, all of our Elected Officials, FDNY, NYPD, Union Partners, NYC Emergency Management, Achiezer and various community stakeholders who reached out and were onsite to help assist us this evening,” Hastick-Motes added. “As the only hospital on the Rockaway peninsula we are committed to continuing to provide quality healthcare to the Rockaway community.”
While the quick actions of the FDNY prevented tragedy from striking, the hospital’s roof, as well as its tenth and eleventh floors sustained damage. In an effort to raise the funds necessary for the repairs, the hospital has created the Fire Recovery and Resiliency Fund, which is seeking to gather donations through their website ehs.org/firefund.
“The fire did not set us back, it just gave us the fuel to propel forward as we continue to do the great work we have been doing to support the healthcare needs of our community,” said Jerry Walsh, Chief Executive Officer of the hospital.
<<< Scan The QR code to donate to St. John’s Episcopal Hospital and help them rebuild the floors damaged by last weekend’s fire.
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