An electrical shortage ignited a small fire on the first floor of the Duke Medical Center Friday afternoon.
Approximately 25 firefighters responded to the call at the hospital a few minutes after the initial automatic fire alarm went off at 3 p.m. No injuries were reported.
"We responded to an automatic fire alarm which was upgraded to a small structure fire," said Acting Battalion Chief Jeffrey Kusz . "As far as we know, it was a malfunction in the electrical panels within the electrical room, and it burned up two to three panels in the room."
Electricity was shut down in the entire hospital, and power was reverted to the backup generator, said Tracey Koepke, public information officer for Duke Medical Center.
Glennys Storch, who works in support services at the hospital cafeteria, said she sat in the dark for about two minutes.
"The lights went out and the emergency lights were on," she said. "Everybody got out of the cafeteria."
Although the hospital was not evacuated, David Wooten, a patient staying on the ninth floor of the hospital, said he asked a nurse to remove his intravenous tube and left on his own accord.
"I could smell it burning, and they started making people go into the rooms," he said. "The hospital was on fire, and I didn't feel safe."
Wooten also said he heard a "code black" being announced over the loudspeakers in the hospital. The electrical fire was labeled a code black, which is the code for a utilities fire, Koepke said.
The combination of no visibility-because of the heavy smoke inside the hospital-and an electrical current made conditions especially serious.
Nevertheless, the fire was contained within 30 minutes, and firefighters completed internal smoke ventilation and left within two hours after arriving. The hospital went back to full power approximately five hours after the fire.
"I thought it was an outstanding job on the fire department to contain the fire to what it was," Kusz said.
Koepke said she was pleased by the way the hospital responded to the incident. "I believe the systems that are in place at Duke Hospital all worked appropriately in terms of shutting down the main power and going on backup power," she said. "Faculty and staff all responded quickly and appropriately to make sure that our patients were okay."
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