Brooklyn Hospital Remains Closed Days After Being Flooded by Torrential NYC Rains

Officials at a hospital in Brooklyn announced that it will be closed for several days after torrential rainfall in New York City caused a power outage and flood damage at the building.

NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull conducted an evacuation of all patients and staff on Saturday, according to a hospital press release. The hospital switched to backup emergency power on Friday following an outage in the neighborhood.

Con Edison then told the hospital that they would have to shut down the backup power in order to make repairs, which could take several days, per the release.

The NYC Health + Hospitals facilities team and Con Edison will assess the building for damages after it is vacated.

About 120 patients will be transferred to other NYC Health + Hospitals facilities by ambulances, ambulettes, FDNY transport vehicles and New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM) transport vehicles. Critical patients were transferred on Friday. The hospital estimated that it would take eight hours to relocate all patients.

“We are prepared to activate a full evacuation plan and transfer all patients to other hospitals or post-acute facility in our health system,” NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull CEO Gregory J. Calliste said in a statement. “We are confident that our expert team of emergency managers, patient care professionals, and city government partners will be able to safely transfer and protect our patients. And we’re grateful to our partners at Con Edison for completing these repairs as swiftly as possible.”

Families of patients were notified about the transfers and received information about their relative's receiving hospital. Hospital staff will travel with their patients to ensure a smooth transition.

Mayor Eric Adams praised the hospital's efforts, stating they “seamlessly transferred all of their patients to other hospitals to allow for electrical repairs to address the damage caused by the storm,” according to the New York Post.

Ambulances will be diverted from Woodhull until the facility reopens. NYC Health + Hospitals said several organizations are assisting with the transfer, including NYCEM, FDNY, NYPD and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.