04/17/2026
Encapsulated Fire Occurrence at Bartlett Regional Hospital
At 1:46 p.m. a fire began inside a utility closet within the hospital’s Surgical Services unit as a result of an accidental cut into electrical heat tape by a hospital worker. A Code Red alert was issued, and the encapsulated fire was quickly responded to by hospital maintenance staff and contained by Capital City Fire & Rescue personnel.
Surgical services patients and staff were immediately evacuated. As an additional safety precaution, an evacuation of all hospital patients, staff, and visitors was put into motion. Those individuals were quickly brought back into the hospital, and outpatient units were vacated and appointments were canceled for the remainder of the day.
The ‘all clear’ was issued for the Code Red alert at 3:40 p.m. An evaluation of the damage within the Surgical Services unit is ongoing.
The hospital worker who cut into the electrical heat tape was treated and released from the Emergency Department. There were no injuries of patients, visitors, or other staff.
All elective surgeries scheduled for tomorrow are canceled. All other hospital services are open.
Hospital personnel are grateful for the quick response by our maintenance staff, Capital City Fire Rescue personnel, and the Juneau Police Department.
