‘It Was A Crisis Even Before The Fires’: Destruction Of Psychiatric Hospital Hit Already Vulnerable Area Hard
By shutting down all operations at Vista del Mar, the fire eliminated nearly 75 percent of the acute psychiatric hospital beds in Ventura County.
Ventura County Star:
Hospital's Fiery Closure Widens Care Gap
The closure of an 87-bed psychiatric hospital burned by the Thomas Fire turns an existing care gap into a canyon that will likely send teenagers and other people battling behavioral health issues farther from home. Two of Vista del Mar Hospital’s five buildings on the west side of Ventura were destroyed in the fire that raced from outside Santa Paula to the Ventura hillsides on the night of Dec. 4, causing 67 patients to evacuate in a last-minute convoy of vans and other vehicles. (Kisken, 12/21)
California Healthline:
Near Incineration Of Psychiatric Hospital Highlights Gaping Need For More Beds
As fire raged in Ventura, Calif., earlier this month, Gracie Hartman made her way to the county fairgrounds to look for her friend, Fernando. She found him there at the evacuation center, among 69 patients from the Vista del Mar acute psychiatric hospital, one of two such facilities in the county. They had been removed with little time to spare as the hospital was overtaken by flames. (Feder Osterov, 12/21)