TOMS RIVER: Earlier in the week OCSN posted yet another story regarding an activated fire alarm at Community Medical Center. Some readers were interested in the frequency of false alarms; others took offense as if we set out to badmouth the hospital. In an effort to defend ourselves and our publications, OCSN filed an Open Public Records Act request for CAD calls to CMS. It seems like the Community Medical Center is always is reporting false alarms, which require a response from at least Stations 25 & 26. Beyond just the fire department responding with or without apparatus, the fire inspectors and officials need to be involved. To attempt to determine if there is a pattern of faulty fire equipment at CMC, OCSN requested via OPRA a log of fire alarm responses. OCSN asked for ALL responses by Toms River Fire Department for ANY fire alarm at Community Medical Center between 01/01/2020 through 02/15/2020. We received 46 responses alone in just that time frame. OCSN is working on creating a story explaining all these false alarms as we go over the 100+ pages of report documents.

Sample screen shot of the 46 individual records of false alarms since 01/01/2020

Some of the reports indicate faulty detectors, burnt cooking, and cases like this of vaping in the 1st floor Cath Lab- Men’s Locker. Stay tuned as we determine if Community Medical Center needs to invest in better fire safety equipment- or their false alarms are on average with other area hospitals.

Remember: OCSN is here to potentially save lives and tax dollars- NOT disrespect any hospital workers/heroes. With Barnabas Health having a healthy revenue off 2020- they can spend some capital improving fire and smoke alarms in the facility. No facility can be responsible for every time a doctor burns bagels in the lounge- but those faulty detectors can be repaired more frequently for sure.

2020 Q4 Unaudited Consolidated Financial Statement (RWJ Barnabas Health)