Infants to be back in neonatal today

By William K. Alcorn

alcorn@vindy.com

BOARDMAN

Nine tiny patients were expected to be moved back today into Akron Children’s Hospital Mahoning Valley’s neonatal unit after they were evacuated early Sunday when a water pipe broke on the floor above.

Hospital officials said the break occurred about 7:40 a.m. leaking water onto the third-floor neonatal unit and a nurses station on the second floor.

Patient rooms had minimal water damage, but patients in the affected area were moved as a precaution, said Sharon Hrina, vice president of Akron Children’s Hospital Mahoning Valley.

Seven of the nine infants in the neonatal unit were moved to the hospital’s pediatric inpatient unit and two were transported to Akron Children’s special-care nursery at St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown.

“Our staff moved quickly to make sure our patients were safe. We sustained minimal water damage to patient-care areas, and the cleanup has begun. The emergency department and inpatient hospital remained open,” Hrina said.

She said the leak was believed to be the result of a weakness in the lining of the pipe on the fourth floor, which is an attic space.