Power restored to Ottawa Hospital General Campus, but ER remains closed
The Ottawa Hospital says power has been fully restored to the General Campus after a transformer fire on Friday, but the emergency department is still closed.
The fire plunged several floors into darkness Friday and forced nearly 100 patients, including 17 babies in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), be moved out of affected areas. Surgeries, clinics and appointments at the hospital this week are being rescheduled.
- The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App
- Sign up now for our nightly CTV News Ottawa newsletter
"Unfortunately, we run 16 (operating rooms), so we do a lot of surgery on this site," said Ottawa Hospital CEO Cameron Love. "Having lost three or four or five days of elective activity, what we'd be doing now is calling out to all the patients, reschedule them over the coming one, two three weeks. Anything that's time sensitive or urgent in nature gets prioritized."
The hospital also confirmed Monday that an unspecified amount of donated blood was lost because the refrigerators storing it lost power.
"We take very precautionary measures where any of the blood products or medications that we feel may have been compromised unfortunately have to be removed from a safety perspective," Love said.
No one was hurt as a result of the fire, but several floors were damaged by smoke and by the water used to fight the fire.
The babies that were taken to CHEO over the weekend have since returned to the General Campus.
In a statement late Monday afternoon, the hospital said it had lifted its "code grey – power" after normal power was fully restored to the entire General Campus. Large generators were on scene earlier in the day to power the hospital.
"We continue to work towards restoring normal operations at the General Campus, however a Code Orange – General Only – remains in effect," said spokesperson Rebecca Abelson.
Anyone seeking an emergency department visit is asked to go to other hospitals in the city.
Love told CTV News Ottawa that five units still weren't up and running on Monday. The goal is to have the code orange lifted by early Thursday at the latest.
"The NICU has be restored, so we're transferring babies back today and the other two or three will happen between now and probably end of day Wednesday, so our goal is end of day Wednesday beginning of Thursday to be back to pretty much normal operation," he said.
--With files from CTV News Ottawa's Katie Griffin.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Much of Canada is under a weather alert this weekend: here's what to know
From snow, to high winds, to extreme cold, much of Canada is under a severe weather alert this weekend. Here's what to expect in your region.
'I gave them a call, they didn't pick up': Canadian furniture store appears to have gone out of business
Canadian furniture company Wazo Furniture, which has locations in Toronto and Montreal, appears to have gone out of business. CTV News Toronto has been hearing from customers who were shocked to find out after paying in advance for orders over the past few months.
Fugitive U.S. rioter seeks asylum in Whistler amid warnings of more to come
An American citizen convicted of participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot on Capitol Hill and dodging jail time in Whistler may just be the start of an asylum-seeking rush, according to a prominent legal expert.
Prince William expresses sadness at death of his former nanny's stepson in New Orleans attack
Prince William expressed his shock and sadness Saturday at the news of the death of his former nanny's stepson in the New Year's truck attack in New Orleans that killed 14 people.
Thirty years on, is Quebec headed for another independence referendum?
On the eve of the 30th anniversary of Quebec's second independence referendum -- the first one was in 1980 -- it seems the tide could be turning again. Legault is deeply unpopular after six years in power, and the Parti Quebecois, with a young, charismatic leader, has been ahead in the polls for more than a year.
Soldier who died by suicide in Las Vegas told ex-girlfriend of pain and exhaustion after Afghanistan
The highly decorated Special Forces soldier who died by suicide in a Cybertruck explosion on New Year's Day confided to a former girlfriend who had served as an Army nurse that he faced significant pain and exhaustion that she says were key symptoms of traumatic brain injury.
Man arrested after committing five bank robberies in 10 days: Toronto police
A man accused of robbing five Toronto-area banks in a 10-day period has been arrested by Toronto police.
Four puppies abandoned in northern Ont. rescued, rehomed
On New Year's Day, a pair had gone for a drive on northern Ontario backroads near Markstay-Warren to look at the local wildlife when they came upon four puppies in the middle of the road in the cold.
Calgary woman stranded in Mexico after husband's death during diving trip
A Calgary woman is struggling to return home after her husband died while diving in Mexico, leaving her stranded and facing financial hardship.