Assessment of Health Sciences Centre damage still under review

The full extent of damage to the Health Sciences Centre after a sprinkler system break is still under review, though patients will not be affected as repairs continue.

Three apparently separate incidents took place at the same time on Sunday: the sprinkler system broke, causing a flood in the basement; smoke entered the building from an outside source unrelated to the sprinkler system; and an elevator malfunctioned.

In a statement, Eastern Health says the preliminary assessment is complete, but it’s not known if more funding from the provincial government will be needed to complete repairs.

“We are still working to complete a full assessment of the damage and as such, it is not possible to say for certain whether additional provincial financial support will be required,” wrote spokesperson Rod Drover.

“However, we do know that no sections of the facility affecting patient care will have to close to allow the required repairs to take place.”

The investigation into the cause of the sprinkler pipe break is ongoing. Eastern Health says its insurance provider has been contacted to further assess the situation.

Eastern Health says the smell of smoke and the malfunctioning elevator were not related to the sprinkler system break. The elevator has since been repaired.

Sections of the hospital will see restrictions in some areas as repairs continue.

“Unfortunately, there will be some impact to employee corridor spaces, and we will need to manage foot traffic in these areas during the repair process. We are working with our staff on this to ensure patient care will not be impacted as a result.”