Whitehorse General Hospital has returned to running completely on the grid after power issues over the last week saw some elective surgeries postponed and some services relocated within the hospital.
Yukon Hospitals spokesperson James Low said as of the evening of June 9, all of the hospital was back to grid power with efforts for “some final maintenance activities” underway June 10.
In an earlier email June 9, Low explained that over the past week there’s been “blips” in the power which lasted just a few seconds.
In such cases, the hospital automatically moves to a back-up generator for power and then back on the grid once it is available.
Over the past week though when those blips have occurred, only some parts of the hospital moved back to being on the grid, while others have remained on back-up power, Low said.
As a precautionary measure, some elective surgeries were postponed and some services temporarily relocated to areas that were back on the grid, he said.
The hospital worked with ATCO Electric Yukon and others to resolve the issue.
Low emphasized that the hospital continued to have power throughout the building, whether on the grid or through the generator.
“People should have assurance that hospital services are available if/when they need them,” he wrote in the email.