The staff at the Greenfield Senior Living of Woodstock is being credited with preventing a Wednesday evening laundry fire from causing more damage than it did. 

Staff at the 935 Ox Road facility reported the fire at 5:21 p.m., Shenandoah County Fire Marshal Joe Loving said by phone interview.

The fire alarm system also activated and about 30 residents and five staff members evacuated the building. A sprinkler head was working in the room, but crews arrived to find flames and thick smoke that left no visibility in the room, Loving said. A water hose line was used to extinguish the blaze within minutes, he said.

Damages totaled an estimated $10,000-$15,000, Loving said. The cause of the accidental fire is believed to be kitchen towels and aprons with grease on them igniting inside the industrial dryer, Loving said. 

But because facility staff closed the laundry room's doors, the fire was contained without further destruction, he said.

“They did everything employees are trained to do,” Loving said.

While the residents were displaced from the building for about three hours, they sat in the facility's air-conditioned travel buses. McDonald's donated 30 meals for the residents too, Loving added.

No injuries were reported, and no living spaces were impacted. The facility will, however, be doing its laundry at the second location across the street due to dryer damage. 

Responding units included fire departments from Woodstock, Edinburg and Toms Brook; rescue squads from Woodstock and Strasburg; the Shenandoah County Department of Fire and Rescue; and Woodstock Police Department and Sheriff’s Office.

Crews cleared the scene after about two hours with the Fire Marshal's Office remaining for about an hour.

Contact Charles Paullin at cpaullin@nvdaily.com

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