While construction work is at full throttle on various public sector projects in Anguilla, mainly schools, there is an equally speedy building contract in progress on what has been described as a critical extension to the Princess Alexandra Hospital.
The island’s passionate Minister of Health, Mr. Evans Rogers, gave the description of the hospital extension in an interview with The Anguillian newspaper on Wednesday, January 15. He spoke while visiting the site, north of the main hospital building, and in the company of the contractor, Mr. Cleve Richards of East End.
“This work is part of the whole hospital expansion – and let me say thanks to the British Government, and the British taxpayers, for the sixty million pounds that they gave to Anguilla out of which a portion of the funds are being used here,” the Minister stated.
“I would also like to thank our local contractor, Mr. Cleve Richards, well-known in Anguilla in terms of building, land surveying, architecture and so on, for what is happening here.” Part of the work is a very large cistern about which Minister Rogers said: “You can never have enough water especially around a hospital site. It will be here to complement the water that is necessary at any health facility. We have the dialysis unit that takes a lot of water – and the hospital in general. You have to have quality water in order to be able to function properly.”
Waving his arm across the sprawling building site, Mr. Rogers continued: “This project is basically part and parcel of a general storage building. It will also be used for medical supplies. As you know, the main pharmacy is going to be at The Valley Polyclinic where construction work will, hopefully, commence within the next four to six weeks. The pharmacy here at this facility will be for inpatients. In addition to the cistern, the general and medical storage building, we are going to have the morgue. This is a very critical component of the entire health facility. It will be an updated morgue with all the necessary bits and pieces of equipment.
“We will also have a Sleeping Bay for the Emergency Medical Technicians and, as time goes on, we will at least add two-bedroom facilities for doctors who will be on call – and for locums when our doctors are on vacation. The ancillary staff, such as housekeeping employees and other persons who are critically important to the functioning and development of any healthcare facility, will also be located here in this particular facility. In addition, provision has been made for an ambulance garage.
“The building is therefore a multi-function project going forward. It will be one and a half storey building. In essence, it is a critical part of the overall development. It augurs well for the planned new hospital facility which will be built just across the street – and in some cases the health facilities will take up all of this area. The overall improvement to the Princess Alexandra Hospital is not throwing salt water in the ocean. In other words, it will later be repurposed to the Miriam Gumbs Senior Citizens’ Home when we realise the new modern healthcare facility. In essence, I am preparing a place for myself and a number of other Anguillians.”
The contractor, Mr. Cleve Richards, said the extension to the hospital is close to four thousand square feet or 229 feet long by 18 feet 8 inches wide. “So far, we are getting along pretty fine although there have been a few little drawbacks, but we are almost back on track,” he said. “Work is progressing well on both phases of the one-and-a-half storey building which should be completed towards the end of June to early July.”
About his workforce, Mr. Richards stated: “I currently have twelve men on staff but those are mainly our masonry workers. I still have electricians, plumbers and other workers who will be coming as necessary.”
Apart from himself, the principal workmen on the job are: Keith Antoine and Ernest Bryan, Foremen; and Joslyn Lake, Site Supervisor.
