Patient burned after smoking cigarette while connected to oxygen at Rocky Mount rehab center

A rehab center in Rocky Mount is being investigated by the state after a patient caught on fire in her room.

The Rocky Mount Police Department said a woman at Rocky Mount Rehabilitation Center was connected to an oxygen tank and tried to smoke a cigarette, causing a burst of flames and badly burning her.

Police were called at 8:30 p.m. Monday to the facility at 160 S. Winstead Ave. for a burn victim.

First responders were told how the fire started, with staff members having to use blankets and fire extinguishers to put out the flames.

The woman was transferred to Nash UNC hospital with burns to her torso after the incident.

Rocky Mount police and fire officials were not able to comment on the woman’s condition after the incident, saying medical privacy laws prevented it.

WRAL News reached out to Rocky Mount Rehabilitation Center, which confirmed that the incident had taken place.

"On Monday July 11, an event occurred at Rocky Mount Rehabilitation Center involving a resident who had been with us and part of our family for over two years," a spokesperson for the center said. "As this is an ongoing investigation and due to confidentiality, we cannot provide any specific resident information at this time."

WRAL News followed up with several questions to the center, including whether the patient was being supervised when the incident happened and whether the center has policies in place to prevent smoking while patients are on oxygen.

The center has not responded as of Thursday evening.

On Thursday morning, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services confirmed that the state has opened an investigation into this incident.

"[The North Carolina Division of Health Services Regulation] is aware of the fire at Rocky Mount Rehab and has already begun an onsite investigation," an NCDHHS spokesperson said. "Once the investigation is complete, the report regarding the investigation (together with the nursing home’s plan of correction if deficiencies were found) are posted publicly."