Heather Wright/The Independent

Construction on Petrolia’s new emergency department will start in late October or early November.

That from Bluewater Health officials during a Petrolia Council meeting Monday.

Officials revealed K&L Construction has won the $14 million contract to build the new ER and the official ground breaking will be held in late October or early November. Construction will begin after that.

“We understand how important CEEH is to Petrolia and the surrounding community, and our team of experienced staff looks forward to working collaboratively with Bluewater Health to deliver modernized healthcare spaces while carefully managing construction within an active hospital environment,” said Todd Hodgins, President, of London-based K&L Construction in a news release.

In 2017, the hospital announced 25-year plans to completely redevelop the rural hospital including reconfiguring the emergency department and a new diagnostics department. 

Over the past eight years, work has been done on the building’s infrastructure including replacing an aging power plant and renovating patient rooms.

Bluewater Health approved the design of the ER but has been waiting for three years to get the green light from the Ministry of Health to begin work on the ER. January, the hospital was given the green light for construction and expected work to begin over the summer.

Monday, officials announced the contractor had been chosen and the three to four-year construction project is likely to being in late October or early November.

Officials from the Bluewater Health Foundation says another $5 million will be raised in the community to pay for equipment and furnishings. Two million of that has already been raised.

More to come…