Ambulances diverted from D.C.’s George Washington University Hospital due to burst pipe

D.C. Health ordered ambulances diverted away from seeking treatment at George Washington University Hospital this week due to flooding issues.

D.C. Health said that it “is in close contact with hospital leadership and tracking impacts to patients and staff. To ensure patient safety and expand capacity for remediation, the facility has been placed on EMS diversion until further notice,” in a statement Friday to George Washington University student newspaper the GW Hatchet.

Edward Smith, executive director of the District of Columbia Nurses Association union, told the GW Hatchet that the first recent flooding incident occurred on Jan. 26, when water filled a stairwell.  A sprinkler pipe then burst on Monday, causing more flooding. 

Several operating rooms, “which required us to reschedule elective procedures originally planned … Engineering teams are on site and remediation is currently occurring,” a hospital spokesperson told WRC-TV.

In addition, cold temperatures have been an issue beyond the impact on the pipes.

“People are walking around with jackets and coats and hospitals in general aren’t the cleanest of places. So, when you’re walking around with your own personal jackets, coats and hats. I know some nurses have brought in space heaters.  When they’re charting, they have space heaters under their feet, which is a fire hazard,” one nurse, who did not provide her name, told WDVM-TV.

Mr. Smith also claimed to the GW Hatchet that flooding issues had left nearly a quarter of the bed stock at the hospital out of commission. His union represents more than 700 nurses at the hospital.

“We don’t know exactly the timetable from the Department of Health when diverting patients. We don’t know exactly what repair schedules there’s been; why weren’t repairs done a month ago? All sorts of questions about not just the current situation, but how you deal with it,” Mr. Smith told WDVM-TV.