ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — When pipes break at health-care facilities, repairs can prove to be costly, and according to the response received from a recent access to information request The Telegram submitted to Eastern Health, these incidents have on occasion been the result of human error.
From the beginning of 2018 through to the end of last year, there were three significant pipe-break incidents dealt with at the Health Sciences Centre in St. John's, with the combined cost of repairs totalling just over $2 million plus HST.
The first incident happened on April 25, 2019 on the fifth floor of the special care unit. A contractor working on that floor dropped ductwork, material typically used in air ventilation systems. The material damaged piping and caused water to shoot out vertically and horizontally. The estimated cost of repairs was $391,227 plus tax.
Almost six months later, a mishap involving a bookshelf proved to be even more costly. On Oct. 11, 2019, a Memorial University employee was moving a bookshelf on the third floor of the school of pharmacy, which is located in the Health Sciences Centre. The worker suddenly lost control of the bookshelf, which sheared the head of a sprinkler line in a corridor, sending water all the way down to Level 1 of the Health Sciences Centre.
The Telegram reported last fall that the incident resulted in the evacuation of some areas of the facility. According to the access to information request, most of the damage was on the school of pharmacy's side of the facility. The estimated cost of repairs was $778,000 plus tax.
The third incident occurred Sept. 1, 2019. A sprinkler pipe rupture resulted in water damage to a large area on Level 1 of the Health Sciences Centre. A fire department representative told The Telegram at the time that firefighters had trouble shutting down the water flow to the area when a shutoff valve got stuck, forcing them to use another valve to cut the water supply. The estimated cost of repairs totalled $855,600 plus tax. Shortly after the incident, Eastern Health told The Telegram it had contacted its insurance provider to assess the situation.
Pipe breaks at other Eastern Health facilities have generally proven to be less costly, according to figures provided through the access to information request. Two incidents at St. Clare's Mercy Hospital in St. John's required repairs totalling approximately $17,000, and nine pipe-break incidents at Carbonear General Hospital cost approximately $50,000 to repair.
Meanwhile, 60 incidents reported in Bonavista added up to almost $14,000 in labour costs and approximately $40,000 in materials. About two-thirds of the labour costs ($9,369.68) were associated with one plumbing project at the Bonavista Peninsula Health Centre.
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