Two residents were killed when a fire tore through the Brookdale Clinton senior living home in Clinton, Mississippi, on Wednesday evening, Mayor Will Purdie confirmed at a news conference on Thursday, the Associated Press reported. “It’s with a heavy heart that I share with you that two residents lost their lives in that fire,” Purdie said.

Source: Associated Press via FireRescue1

Hinds County Coroner Jeramiah Howard said the two people who died were an 82-year-old man and an 81-year-old woman, according to Queen City Newsfeed. Their names had not been released in the reporting. The facility, on East Northside Drive in Clinton — about 10 miles (16 kilometres) northwest of Jackson — was home to more than 100 people, many of them with mobility issues.

Source: Queen City Newsfeed

The fire broke out shortly after 5 p.m. Clinton Fire Chief Levius Buckley told reporters that two wings of the facility were a total loss, and Marlee Price-Cook, the city’s director of communications, told the AP that the “majority of the building is gone,” with a partially collapsed roof. Firefighters rescued residents through windows as crews from multiple agencies — including the Jackson Fire Department, Hinds County volunteer departments and retired Clinton firefighters — battled the blaze, Queen City Newsfeed reported.

Source: Queen City Newsfeed

Evacuated residents were taken by bus to Morrison Heights Baptist Church on Hampstead Boulevard, where they were reunited with family members, and Brookdale was arranging moves to sister properties, officials said. WENG Radio reported that four residents were hospitalised with non-life-threatening injuries. The Mississippi State Department of Health and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency joined the response, and search teams worked through the night to account for everyone.

Source: WENG Radio

Cause under investigation

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Chief Buckley said investigators do not believe the fire was intentionally set, according to Queen City Newsfeed, and WENG reported that he called rumours about malfunctioning sprinklers “not factual.” Governor Tate Reeves said in a statement on X that “Mississippi is praying for the residents, employees and families affected by the terrible fire at the Brookdale assisted living facility in Clinton.” Families seeking information about residents were directed to Morrison Heights Baptist Church or to a Brookdale representative at 601-926-1224, Queen City Newsfeed reported.

Source: Associated Press via FireRescue1