Elsie Hellstrom thought she would die “freezing in a fire”.
For two hours on March 9, the 105-year-old resident of Chartwell Carrington House in Mission was left behind in the second floor stairwell while the seniors complex was engulfed in flames around her.
Firefighters managed to rescue Hellstrom from the burning building, but she died five days later on March 14 after suffering from smoke inhalation, dehydration, and hypothermia.
“She was just telling everybody how scared she was and how she was trying to call for help and that she was pressing her alert button,” Hellstrom’s granddaughter Pamela Callaghan said.
At 105, Hellstrom’s mind was still sharp but she began to slow down physically. lShe couldn’t walk without a walker.
While trapped in the stairwell, Hellstrom would get hit with a wave of freezing cold water from the fire hoses and hang on to the railing tightly, according to Callaghan.
“The wave from the fire hoses would pass and then she’d start calling out for help again. This went on for a long time,” Callaghan said.
Callaghan said if it wasn’t for her cousin being at the evacuation site, authorities wouldn’t have known Hellstrom was missing.
Her cousin was able to get in contact with the Abbotsford battalion chief, who notified the Mission Fire Rescue Service, Callaghan said.
Callaghan alleges there was no one with a checklist ensuring each resident was accounted for. She said she doesn’t understand why Chartwell told both the fire department and police department that everyone got out.
“We just don’t understand that. I mean, it’s pretty standard procedure and protocol,” Callaghan said.
Hellstrom was among 16 people sent to hospital for smoke inhalation after the fire, according to Mission Fire Rescue Service at the time.
The morning after the blaze, Hellstrom’s vitals were good and the medical team was using warming pads to try and bring her temperature back to normal.
“She was of sound mind, so she could recall everything that was happening. But then, unfortunately …. she was having a very difficult time talking. The smoke inhalation was just really catching up to her at that point, and she was slowly starting to shut down,” Callaghan said.
Hellstrom was moved into Hospice and family members had a chance to see her before she passed on March 14.
Her family and friends described her as a matriarch who loved life, and participated in various activities at Carrington house, where she lived for 17 years.
In the days and months after the fire, Callaghan said there were no follow-ups from Chartwell, Mission Fire Rescue Service, or Emergency Support Services.
She said the family finally heard from a Chartwell insurer on June 19 after a story about Hellstrom’s passing aired on TV.
“That’s the first time we had any contact whatsoever, after numerous attempts of trying to reach them,” Callaghan said.
In a statement, Chartwell extended condolences to Hellstrom’s family and loved ones.
Chartwell said its employees “responded immediately to a rapidly evolving emergency and acted in accordance with the direction of emergency responders.”
“The evacuation took place under extremely challenging conditions, and our team worked tirelessly to assist residents while coordinating with police, fire, and other emergency personnel on site,” the statement reads.
“The actions of our employees during and after the fire have been praised by emergency response and health authority partners involved in the incident. We are proud of the professionalism, compassion, and dedication demonstrated by our team members in extraordinarily difficult circumstances.”
Chartwell said it is aware of the allegations made regarding the emergency response but “it would not be appropriate to comment on specific allegations or speculate on circumstances that continue to be reviewed”, since the matter has been referred to insurers.
“We continue to cooperate fully with all relevant authorities and our insurers throughout these processes,” the statement reads.
A previous statement from Chartwell in May said the “vast majority of displaced residents have now secured appropriate long-term accommodations” but it was not able to comment on individual situations.
A displaced resident spent approximately a month at Mission Memorial Hospital awaiting a permanent long-term care placement after the temporary housing at Chartwell’s Surrey facility ran out on April 29. The man’s son said he landed a “wonderful” placement in Abbotsford roughly a week after sharing the story with the media.
The day after the fire, MFRS chief Mark Goddard said at a press conference that no serious injuries or fatalities were reported, but said 16 were hospitalized for smoke inhalation – 10 at Mission Memorial and six in Abbotsford.
He mentioned that a resident over 100 years old was found alive in the stairwell two hours into the response.
“I think she probably tried to escape and wasn’t able to make it,” Goddard said at the time. “Our crews were doing a search of that area (and) found her. She was cold and she’d had some minor bumps and bruises.”
No fatality was mentioned in subsequent updates from Chartwell or the City of Mission.
IAFF Local 4768 vice president Rich Rangers, one of four firefighters first to attend, shared details about the response in a delegation to council in May.
A total of 60 firefighters responded to the blaze, including 15 career off duty, 15 paid-on-call that could go inside, 17 that could only stay outside and 13 that could “questionably” go inside, Rangers said.
He said Mission was “bloody lucky” the fire happened at the time of day it did with Carrington staff on hand and the majority of paid-on-call firefighters available.
For time-critical calls like the Carrington fire, he said staffing makes a difference. Rangers added that the city’s current staffing model is insufficient for modern day emergency demands.
“When staffing is insufficient, time is lost. When time is lost, conditions worsen. And when conditions worsen, lives are put at risk, including ours. That is not fear-mongering, that is the reality of emergency response. Every second matters in a fire, every firefighter matters during a rescue, and every staffing decision made in this chamber has real world consequences,” Rangers said.
In May, the City of Mission said the fire investigation was still in progress and details on the cause were unavailable. The Mission Record contacted the city on Monday (June 22) for further comment.
Callaghan acknowledged the dangerous circumstances for the firefighters and credited Carrington House employees for their efforts in helping to evacuate.
However, she said there was some negligence and protocols that were not followed.
“I also understand the circumstances that it was treacherous and that it was a very difficult time and it was a very terrible fire, but that’s why we have procedures and protocols in place,” Callaghan said.