Ceiling collapses at Sando hospital

STACY MOORE

PATIENTS had to be rushed out of the burns unit of the San Fernando General Hospital yesterday morning after a portion of the ceiling collapsed. No one was injured.

In a media release, the South West Regional Authority (SWRHA) said the patients had been relocated to a safe and secure area and continued to receive treatment from healthcare professionals.

Reports said that at about 1.10 am yesterday, part of the ceiling caved in. At the time four patients were on the ward.

“As a safety precaution our patients and staff were temporarily relocated to another six-bedded vacant area on Level 2 of the hospital,” the SWRHA release stated. The area was previously assigned to the treatment of blood disorders.

Yesterday, a construction team was on site assessing the area for repair work that would take place “in the shortest period of time,” according to the release.

The SWRHA also expressed gratitude to its “dedicated staff” for their immediate response and apologised to its patients and staff for any inconvenience caused.

In a separate incident last Wednesday night, the Point Fortin Area Hospital was plunged into darkness for almost an hour following a power outage compounded by a malfunctioning generator. The generator, Newsday learnt, has been malfunctioning for some time and requires switching on and off by technicians in the event of an outage. Newsday was told that, on Wednesday night, the technicians were not on duty and had to be called out. It took some time for them to get to the hospital and start the generator for power to be restored at around 8 pm.

However, SWRHA CEO Gail Miller-Meade, in a previous interview, admitted there was an outage, but denied the generator failed to kick in. She said, according to her information, the generator was working properly.