April construction update from Mirebalais Hospital

The Mirebalais Teaching Hospital has come a long way since breaking ground on July 2, 2010.

Concrete is being poured for the first two buildings.

Site Supervisor Larry Nicholls gives a tour to an American structural engineering surveyor.

Haitian workers lay cement for the roof.

The excavation and leveling of the site is complete. In total, over 4,387,989 cubic feet of dirt was moved and the base of the building was raised 10 feet for protection against flooding. We have made rapid progress on the foundation and walls of the first five buildings—about 60% of the hospital footprint. 

The concrete has been poured for first two roof slabs of the Womenʼs Health and Ambulatory Care buildings, which are by far the most structurally complex on site. We expect to move more quickly on forming and pouring the roof slabs on the following four buildings. Construction is progressing on the underground plumbing and electrical work, staying just ahead of the excavating and foundation crews.

In the last week of March, we successfully completed the extensive system of drainage canals, culverts, and spillways that handle rainwater. This was a crucial milestone, as the Haitian rainy season begins in April, bringing brief but torrential rainstorms each afternoon for the next six months. With this accomplishment, we will be able to protect the buildings that are currently under construction from flooding and possible damage, and we hope to lose less time due to extremely muddy and wet conditions.

Over the next 120 days, the construction crew hopes to complete the concrete on the first four buildings, allowing work to begin inside with the installation of the interior systems and finishes.

In-Kind Donations

In March, Mirebalais Hospital received very significant in kind donations. Stanley Black & Decker donated all door hardware, locks,and keying from their top of the line, heavy-duty commercial door levers and lock series for the 410 doors in the hospital.

Led by Hubbell CEO Tim Powers, three of the largest electrical equipment manufacturers—Hubbell, Southwire, and Thomas & Betts—have donated all the electrical equipment, light fixtures, ceiling fans, and wire for the entire project.