YAKIMA, Wash. — Hospital staff and first responders were on high alert when one of the patients smoked an unidentified substance in their room, leading Yakima Valley Memorial to ventilate its entire facility on Monday morning.
According to a team member at Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital, staff learned about the patient smoking in their room around 10:00 a.m. on Monday, October 10. They immediately informed their security staff before contacting responders from the Yakima Fire Department, Yakima Police Department and the Yakima County Sheriff’s Office.
They quickly responded to all of the other hospital rooms, checking in with other patients to confirm their safety and that they weren’t impacted by the smoke. Ultimately, everyone was safe in regard to this incident.
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Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital staff members then got to work ventilating their facilities so that the scent or lingering impacts of the substance would be removed from their space.
However, some staff members came into direct contact with the substance and are being evaluated for any side effects.
Visitors were restricted from accessing the hospital until around Noon. That’s when normal operations resumed and the situation was fully brought under control.
The following comments were offered on the behalf of Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital: “We’d like to commend our entire team, and first responders for their swift and deliberate action to ensure the safety of everyone in our hospital this morning.”
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