LIBERTY –– At 11:18 a.m. on Sunday, the Liberty Fire Department was dispatched for an activated fire alarm at the Care Center at Sunset Lake.

According to Liberty Fire Chief Mark Johnstone, upon arrival, a light smoke condition was found on the second floor. Residents in the immediate area were quickly moved by staff to an area away from the smoke. 

Johnstone said a second alarm for Liberty was dispatched for additional interior manpower. Loch Sheldrake Fire Department was placed on standby in their station in case Liberty FD  needed additional resources. 

Johnstone said the cause of the smoke was a burnt out motor on a return unit located on the roof. Dry chemical was used to put out the small fire in that unit. 

Livingston Manor EMS also responded to the scene in case any of the residents had breathing difficulties or required transport, which Johnstone said fortunately did not occur. 

Total time on scene was approximately one hour with a dozen Liberty firefighters responding. Also on scene were  Sullivan County Bureau of Fire and EMS representatives. 

“[It was] not much of a fire but with the residents in facility, things can quickly become very challenging,” said Johnstone. “The staff did an excellent job, so we were able to concentrate on the fire part of things.”

Johnstone added that around this time last year, they had the Barkley Garden Apartments fire, which started out as an activated fire alarm and quickly escalated where they had to immediately go into “rescue mode” in locating elderly residents on the fire floor and getting them out of the building. 

“That’s something I always have on [my] mind when we get calls in these types of buildings,” Johnstone said.