Nine patients and staff members reported feeling unwell at the Rehabilitation Hospital of Rhode Island in North Smithfield, prompting an evacuation on Thursday evening, 22 October. Firefighters and hazardous-materials teams reported no unusual readings during checks for gas and carbon monoxide.

Nine People Taken Ill on the Same Floor

The Rehabilitation Hospital of Rhode Island in North Smithfield was evacuated on 22 October 2026 after five patients and four staff members reported dizziness, nausea and vomiting. Lifepoint Health later attributed the incident to a boiler malfunction that caused the building to overheat.

North Smithfield Deputy Fire Chief Jeff Houle said firefighters were called to the hospital on Eddie Dowling Highway at about 7.30pm after reports of multiple people feeling unwell. Those affected were taken to Landmark Medical Center in Woonsocket and Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, and Houle said nobody else was inside the building.

According to Deputy Fire Chief Jeff Houle, all nine people were on the third floor. The building was partially under renovation, with substantial areas not in use. According to its website, the hospital treats patients recovering from conditions including stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury and amputation.

Hazmat Teams Found No Gas or Carbon Monoxide

Firefighters initially checked for carbon monoxide and gas leaks but found nothing unusual on their meters, according to Houle. Hazardous-materials teams also checked the building but could not determine what had caused the symptoms. Houle described the situation as 'a very odd situation'.

Houle told the Boston Globe that investigators could usually determine a cause, but he had never encountered a situation like this. He said he did not know the condition of each person taken to hospital on Friday morning.

North Smithfield Town Administrator Scott Gibbs said he had spoken to North Smithfield Fire Marshal William LaBarre and the state fire marshal, who told him the cause could be mechanical rather than environmental.

Lifepoint Health said local emergency responders, including the state fire marshal, conducted airborne testing and found no gas leaks. WPRI separately reported that the state fire marshal's office would continue investigating the incident.

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Boiler Fault Blamed for Rhode Island Rehab Hospital Illness

Lifepoint Health, which manages the facility, said the hospital had experienced a boiler malfunction that caused the building to overheat. The company described the incident as heat-related and said emergency responders had found no gas leaks during airborne testing.

WJAR reported that crews believe the symptoms, which also included flu-like complaints, are linked to the high temperature. Town Administrator Scott Gibbs said the fire marshal had told him the building's interior temperature reached 90°F (about 32°C).

Gibbs said town inspectors plan to examine the boiler to establish exactly why it failed. An HVAC contractor was due to carry out repairs on Friday, according to WJAR, and Lifepoint Health said the facility will remain closed until the boiler is fixed.

Deputy Fire Chief Jeff Houle said Friday morning that he did not know the status of each of the nine people taken to hospital. Lifepoint said it had no specific reopening timeline while repairs and safety checks were under way.

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