Small fire extinguished at Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital

A small fire was extinguished Wednesday afternoon at Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital in Greensburg.

Fire Chief Tom Bell said a 2-foot-by-2-foot section of insulation caught fire while a crew was using a heating device to install a rubber roof on part of the hospital.

That sent smoke into an area on the ground floor that houses the nuclear medicine department, Bell said. Workers extinguished the flames and firefighters used a ladder truck to check out the section of roof.

Health system spokesman Mike Morlacci said the fire didn’t affect any patients or staff members. Operations returned to normal though there was a residual smoke odor in the area, he said.

There were no injuries. The hospital was not evacuated.