Water, heat restored at Halifax Infirmary hospital site

The Halifax Infirmary hospital site has heat and running water again, but patients and staff are being told not to drink the water as testing continues.

A second water main break occurred inside the power plant at the QEII Halifax Infirmary site around midnight on Wednesday and left the hospital without running water and heat in the building for most of Thursday.

Heat was restored early in the afternoon after temporary water piping was run to the boiler system and just before 6 p.m. Nova Scotia Health confirmed both heat and water were restored.

“We have heat in the building and we have flushing water and we're now currently testing the water," said Derek Spinney, the chief financial officer and VP of corporate services with Nova Scotia Health.

Three days of testing are required to make sure the water is safe to consume from the tap, said Spinney, and if all goes as planned the hospital will see drinking access restored by Sunday.

In the meantime the hospital says bottled water is being provided for patients and staff inside the Halifax Infirmary.

However, the fire sprinkler system is still down; although there is water in the sprinkler lines, the hospital doesn't have the pressure in the system for it to fully work.

“We are walking extra patrols around the building and the fire marshal is fully engaged with us," said Spinney.

Visitor restrictions were lifted at noon on Friday and hospital officials say they expect to return to full operations by Monday. 

For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.