Three Creeks Post Acute: Food Safety Emergency - WA
Three Creeks Post Acute lost power at 5:10 AM on December 17, with electricity not restored until 3:30 PM. The facility's aging backup generator failed to power kitchen refrigerators or freezers, leaving potentially hazardous foods at unsafe temperatures for the entire day.
Staff D, a dietary aide, discovered one refrigerator had reached 50 degrees when power returned. The safe temperature for refrigerated foods is 45 degrees or below. Despite this discovery, no food was discarded.
"They served the milk for dinner that night and for breakfast on December 18," dietary manager Staff C told inspectors during interviews the following day. The milk containers bore dates from before December 16, meaning some had been stored even longer than the power outage duration.
Staff C acknowledged receiving a text from Staff D about the 50-degree refrigerator temperature and the milk inside. Yet the dietary manager made the decision to serve the potentially contaminated dairy products to residents anyway.
During the power outage, kitchen workers Staff F and Staff D were instructed to keep appliance doors closed since the backup generator couldn't power refrigeration equipment. Neither aide took food temperatures during the outage, and Staff F admitted uncertainty about whether foods stayed within safe limits.
The facility's temperature logs for December 17 tell their own story. Lines for that date were marked through with red marker, with "OO service" written in the comment sections for both refrigerators and the freezer. The notation appears to reference the power outage, but no actual temperature readings were recorded during the critical period.
Administrator In Training Staff A explained the generator problem stemmed from the facility's recent ownership change in June 2025. "The generator in the building was old and did not provide power for the kitchen or heat during the power outage," Staff A said. A new generator was supposedly on a purchase list, but had not been installed.
Staff A initially claimed ignorance about the refrigerator temperature problems. During a 10:45 AM interview, they said they were unaware temperatures had exceeded safe limits. But by 1:00 PM the same day, Staff A acknowledged learning that one refrigerator had reached above 45 degrees and confirmed no food had been thrown away.
The dietary manager's reasoning for serving potentially contaminated food relied on assumptions rather than safety protocols. Staff C told inspectors they "thought the other refrigerator was in the safe zone because the door was not opened" and noticed freezer items remained "frozen solid" after power restoration.
Staff C also claimed confidence about food safety because "they dated them when they came into the building." But dating food doesn't prevent bacterial growth when refrigeration fails for 10 hours.
The milk specifically identified as problematic remained in the refrigerator during inspector interviews on December 18. Inspectors observed containers with dates showing the milk had been stored since before December 16, meaning it had been in the facility even before the power failure began.
Director of Nursing Staff B promised to monitor residents for foodborne illness symptoms following the incident. During a follow-up interview on December 22, Staff B reported that all residents present on December 17 had been monitored and "no concerns were identified."
But the monitoring came after residents had already consumed potentially contaminated food for multiple meals. The facility served the questionable milk for dinner on December 17 and again for breakfast on December 18, potentially exposing dozens of vulnerable residents to foodborne pathogens.
The inspection found the facility violated Washington state regulations requiring proper food storage and safety measures. The violation received an "Immediate Jeopardy" designation, indicating the deficiency posed immediate risk to resident health and safety.
Federal guidelines specify that refrigerated foods exceeding 45 degrees for more than four hours should be discarded to prevent bacterial growth that can cause serious illness. Elderly nursing home residents face heightened risks from foodborne illnesses due to compromised immune systems and underlying health conditions.
Three Creeks Post Acute's decision to serve milk stored at unsafe temperatures for 10 hours represents a fundamental failure of food safety protocols designed to protect vulnerable residents from preventable illness.
Full Inspection Report
The details above represent a summary of key findings. View the complete inspection report for Three Creeks Post Acute from 2025-12-22 including all violations, facility responses, and corrective action plans.
Additional Resources
Data source: Official federal inspection data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
Editorial process: AI-synthesized regulatory data, reviewed for accuracy by our editorial team.
Professional review: All content reviewed by Christopher F. Nesbitt, Sr., NH EMT & BU-trained Paralegal.
Last verified: June 14, 2026 · Our methodology
Three Creeks Post Acute in PULLMAN, WA was cited for violations during a health inspection on December 22, 2025.
Three Creeks Post Acute lost power at 5:10 AM on December 17, with electricity not restored until 3:30 PM.
Health inspections identify deficiencies that facilities must correct. Violations range from minor documentation issues to serious safety concerns. Review the full report below for specific details and facility response.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What happened at Three Creeks Post Acute?
- Three Creeks Post Acute lost power at 5:10 AM on December 17, with electricity not restored until 3:30 PM.
- How serious are these violations?
- Violation severity varies from minor documentation issues to serious safety concerns. Review the inspection report for specific deficiency codes and scope. All violations must be corrected within required timeframes and are subject to follow-up verification inspections.
- What should families do?
- Families should: (1) Ask facility administration about specific corrective actions taken, (2) Request to see the follow-up inspection report verifying corrections, (3) Check if this represents a pattern by reviewing prior inspection reports, (4) Compare this facility's ratings with other nursing homes in PULLMAN, WA, (5) Report any new concerns directly to state authorities.
- Where can I see the full inspection report?
- The complete inspection report is available on Medicare.gov's Care Compare website (www.medicare.gov/care-compare). You can also request a copy directly from Three Creeks Post Acute or from the state Department of Health. The report includes specific deficiency codes, facility responses, and correction timelines. This facility's federal provider number is 505246.
- Has this facility had violations before?
- To check Three Creeks Post Acute's history, visit Medicare.gov's Care Compare and review their inspection history, quality ratings, and staffing levels. Look for patterns of repeated violations, especially in critical areas like abuse prevention, medication management, infection control, and resident safety.