Warren firefighters took a morbidly obese woman to the hospital Tuesday after finding her confined to a bed and living in a filthy, bug-infested apartment.
Fire Commissioner Skip McAdams said firefighters wore biohazard suits and had to remove the entire door wall of the apartment in order to get the woman, who he said is about 40 years old, to an ambulance. She was in stable condition when being transported to the hospital, he said.
“She had been bed-ridden for a long time,” McAdams said. “She had broken a hip at some point in the past and had become bed-ridden.”
McAdams said emergency workers went to the apartment, off Gloede near 12 Mile Road, just after noon after following a 911 call from someone who said the woman was unable to get out of bed. Officials estimated that she weighed at least 500 pounds.
McAdams said there were bugs and fecal matter throughout the apartment. The woman has at least two children, he said. Child protective services workers were contacted.
An update to the woman’s medical condition was not immediately available late Tuesday.
“We wish the best for this patient. She’s a human being,” McAdams said. “She’s a patient with a medical illness like any other illness. …
“Our hope is that she’s able to return home and resume a normal, active life.”