THOMASVILLE — The likelihood of a devastating fire at John D. Archbold Memorial Hospital is remote, a hospital official said Thursday.

However, Thomas County and Thomasville fire/rescue and Thomas County emergency management, in conjunction with the hospital, conducted a fire drill Thursday morning that involved a ladder reaching the seventh floor of the hospital North Tower.

Two “patients” were evacuated in the mock exercise.

“All the other patients had been evacuated by hospital staff,” said Chris Jones, county fire/recuse chief and emergency management director.

In the exercise scenario, blazes began in a communications closet and in an electrical closet, said Chuck Winchester, Archbold emergency management coordinator.

“All patients are in stable condition at this time,” he added.

Jones said that in the event of a real fire, affected patients’ family members would go to a designated location to be briefed. Hopefully, Jones said, the briefing location would be the Thomas County School System Auditorium at 200 N. Pinetree Blvd., site of the Thursday morning press briefing.

In an actual hospital fire emergency, reverse 911 would notify residents about traffic delays and other situations resulting from the blaze.

Ann Powell, Thomas County E-911 director, said those receiving reverse 911 calls should follow instructions and not call 911 dispatchers handling the situation.

Responding to the Thursday drill were 13 Thomas County Fire/Rescue personnel and four engines. From Thomasville Fire/Rescue, 12 employees responded, along with two engines, the ladder truck and a command vehicle.

Fire/rescue ascended seven flights of stairs. Each firefighter had 40 to 50 pounds of equipment.

“This is a community-wide event,” Jones said. “All hands on deck.”

Each patient room is equipped with two to four sprinklers, depending on the room’s configuration, said James A. Bue, Archbold vice president of facilities management and safety officer. Each sprinkler delivers 60 gallons of water a minute.

A catastrophic Archbold fire is not likely, Bue said.

Jones pointed out that the seventh floor of the hospital remained operational throughout the drill.

Senior reporter Patti Dozier can be reached at (229) 226-2400, ext. 1820