BHB to demolish two buildings on KEMH campus

Bermuda Hospitals Board (BHB) will be demolishing two buildings on the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital (KEMH) campus in this year. The Queen Elizabeth Nurses Residence (QENR) on Berry Hill Road and the section of the building that housed the Continuing Care Units (CCU) are the two structures that will be taken down. Both have been unoccupied and are in poor physical condition. This does not impact the chapel, Heddington Gym, Activities Lounge or Lymphedema Clinic, which will remain in their current locations.

“These buildings are surplus to our current needs and demolishing them will save BHB in maintenance costs,” said Marshall Minors, BHB Director of Facilities Management & Engineering Services. “The cost of renovating and upgrading either of the buildings to a usable and safe condition would be extremely expensive.”

“We want to reassure the public that the demolition plans do not include the hospital’s chapel. This will remain on the site in its current location as a place of solace for the public,” Mr Minors added. “A new external wall will be constructed to preserve this older part of the hospital from the demolished CCU wings.”

The demolition contract was awarded to Island Construction Services Ltd. after a robust procurement process. Island Construction will be supported by Bermuda Air Conditioning Ltd and Universal Electric Ltd. Work is slated to begin in early January and will last approximately four months. Prior to the demolition protective hoarding will be erected to contain any debris. Misting machines will also be put in place to control dust levels.

Construction on the site of an active hospital has to be carefully planned as vibrations can affect hospital equipment and dust can pose an infection risk. For these reasons the project will be carried out to Local and Canadian Standards Association (CSA) Health and Safety and Infection Control guidelines.

“We are mindful of our neighbours both residents and businesses,” said Mr Minors. “We’ve communicated with them directly and have an open door policy to address any of their concerns.”

The $2 million demolition project includes finished landscaping and represents a significant annual saving to BHB. For the CCU building alone the annual savings are estimated at $1.5 million representing utilities, facilities maintenance, cleaning, security and insurance.

Any necessary road closures are expected to take place on weekends. Detailed notice of road closures will be issued to news media at the appropriate times.

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