The timeline for completion of the long-awaited Western Children and Adolescents Hospital in St James may be significantly pushed back from its projected May 2021 deadline, as work has stalled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, restricting the provision of manpower, equipment and building materials from China.
In providing an update on Thursday about the hospital’s construction, Errol Greene, the regional director of the Western Regional Health Authority (WRHA), told The Gleaner that, although the facility’s foundation is now complete, work at the site has stalled because of the effects of COVID-19, which has recorded morethan eight million infections and 434,000 deaths worldwide.
“The progress update on that project is that the work has stalled somewhat because the contractor is having a challenge getting personnel, equipment, and materials out of China because of COVID-19.
Greene said he could not propose when a possible new timeline might be set for completion of the seven-floor 220-bed facility, which is being built on the grounds of the Cornwall Regional Hospital in Mt Salem.
On October 23 last year, ground was broken for the Western Children and Adolescents Hospital, the construction of which is being funded by the Chinese government.
