Blue Hill Memorial Hospital will be open for business as usual at 8am on Tuesday, August 5. To mark the re-opening, a ribbon-cutting ceremony, including a patient, and Tim Garrity, the hospital’s president and CEO, will take place at 10am at the outside entrance to the hospital. Tim will remark about the natural disaster that forced the closure of all but emergency services since1pm Sunday, and describe how the hospital insured the safety of its patients and quickly and safely returned the hospital to full operations in less than two days.

An employee thank you reception in the main lobby will follow.

On Sunday, August 3, Blue Hill Memorial Hospital, located across from Blue Hill Bay, was inundated with heavy rains during high tide, and the combination caused a flood of the hospital basement, which is unprecedented in the 84-year history of the hospital.

Hospital administration declared a disaster and summoned all available personnel. Because of its inability to provide food service and because of the need to sanitize the affected areas, the hospital evacuated all patients, transferring eight patients to Maine Coast Memorial Hospital in Ellsworth and one Emergency Room patient and one inpatient to EMMC in Bangor.

The hospital was closed to all but emergency care. Also closed were Outpatient Services in the Sussman Medical Office Building, including the laboratory, Blue Hill Family Medicine, Diagnostic Imaging, Specialty Services, Blue Hill Women’s Health Care, and Oncology Outreach Services.

Throughout the emergency the hospital has experienced a tremendous outpouring of support from employees, medical staff, trustees, volunteers, community members, and local EMS and fire departments. "I’ve been filled with a sense of pride and admiration for the people of this hospital and our community," says Tim. "To everyone who assisted during the events of these past two days to get us back in business I want to express my heartfelt appreciation."

Blue Hill Memorial Hospital is dedicated to providing primary and selected specialty healthcare of outstanding quality, caring for our patients with respect and compassion, and improving the health of the communities we serve. We are a member of EMHS, a healthcare system network that works to ensure the highest quality care is available to all who need it, especially those in rural Maine.