David Hayes calls the deluge that swept through Norwood last month a “1,000-year storm.”
On June 28, the skies opened up, dropping 4 inches of rain in 90 minutes. Water gushed like rapids through the streets. It swallowed up cars in the hospital’s parking lot and rushed into the basement, knocking out key infrastructure, including the backup generator.
Hayes, the town’s deputy fire chief, said firefighters had to evacuate dozens of patients in the dark.
“We were in pitch black hallways the entire time,” he said. “It was just a mess. It was completely different than anything we’d prepared for.”
Everyone made it out safely. But there will be no quick recovery for Norwood Hospital, which is still assessing the extent of the damage.
A spokesman for Steward Health Care, the hospital’s private owner, said reopening the emergency department is its top priority. The company is working with state officials to determine a timeline.