The Tribune

By JADE RUSSELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

jrussell@tribunemedia.net 

HEALTH and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville hopes construction on a new New Providence hospital will begin early next year, noting there are three potential candidates to finance the $290m project.

“We went out to the international market to seek funding,” Dr Darville told reporters. “I’m pleased to report that we’re having a lot of positive feedback. We believe that we have narrowed the possible financing down to two or three individual finances. That is being discussed with the Ministry of Finance, and when the details with the financing are completed, it will be my responsibility as minister to notify the general public of where we are with the new hospital here in New Providence.”

“Once the financing is done, we will move very quickly to make an announcement so that the architect and engineers would complete the first phase of the design bill, and hopefully early next year, the Bahamian people could see activity on the site.”

A 50-acre site in the Perpall Tract area near the wellfields to the east of the road that connects the Saunders Beach roundabout with JFK Drive’s ‘six-legged’ roundabout has been selected for the New Providence hospital.

 Dr Darville added that officials have received approval from the Department of Environmental Health and will ensure the hospital is on high ground.

 Some have been concerned about whether the location is secure to withstand severe storms.

 “Anytime we have a hurricane with potential surge, it becomes a problem for all our facilities throughout the archipelago,” Dr Darville said. “This is the reason why we chose a piece of property that is 50 to 70 feet above sea level, to ensure that we are able to sustain surges.”

 Dr Darville said the new facility would be designed to handle any category of hurricane.

 “When it comes to surge, that is an unpredictable factor,” he said. “And we learned a great lesson from Hurricane Dorian because we had surges in Abaco and New Providence anywhere from 16 to 20 feet. And I can tell you for Grand Bahama, we had the ocean almost in the middle of the land. No one expected it. So, in this particular design, we intend to ensure that we are able to design a facility that will not only be able to handle the winds, but also the surges, and likewise in Grand Bahama, the facility that we have chosen is on high ground.”

 Government officials broke ground in May for a new $200m hospital in Grand Bahama.