Morganton hospital ER seeing more patients, storm-related injuries after Hurricane Helene

Morganton's new hospital CEO started his tenure with a trial by fire.

With less than a month on the job, Gary Paxson, CEO of UNC Health Blue Ridge since early September, had to manage the fallout from Hurricane Helene.

The storm tore a path across western North Carolina, causing flooding, mud slides, downed trees, power outages and deaths.

Paxson and the hospital system initially dealt with power loss and water issues, as well as making sure the hospital had the resources needed to continue operating as normally as possible during and after the storm.

Paxson said the Morganton hospital went to emergency generator on Friday, Sept. 27. The generator typically has enough fuel to power the hospital for 96 hours, he said.

The hospital was able to have its full power restored on Saturday, Sept. 28.

The hospital also lost water and had to get an outside tanker truck to pump water into the hospital so it could function safely, Paxson said. It was able to return to city water Wednesday morning, he said.

"The city's done an amazing job of trying to get us back up and running," Paxson said.

Initially, after the storm, the hospital had to postpone non-emergency surgeries. But after it got back to using regular water and power, the hospital has returned to its normal operations.

Paxson said initially after the storm there were several employees who the hospital could not get in contact with, but as of Wednesday all employees but one have been accounted for.

"And we will continue to strive to find that last one as well," Paxson said.

He said the hospital is using every resource available to make sure all staff members are accounted for and safe.

As the hospital system was dealing with the storm and its aftermath, multiple staff members slept at the hospital because they either could not get home, didn't have power at home or just needed a safe place to sleep, Paxson said.

"And so we're housing a lot of those," he said.

Through it all, Paxson said the hospital has had support from UNC Health out of Chapel Hill. Some staff drove in from Chapel Hill and Lenoir to help.

"We've gotten physicians, nurses and other type of staff that have come in voluntarily to help us. We've had increased volumes in our emergency room and patients in-house, and so we've gotten amazing support from across the state to serve those extra needs," Paxson said. "That outpouring of assistance has been truly impressive and greatly appreciated."

He said the average number of patients in their emergency room is 80 to 90 people. Monday night the hospital saw 180 patients and Tuesday night another 125 patients, he said.

Some of those additional patients have been people in need of help to power oxygen equipment, he said. The hospital is working with the local Red Cross shelter to educate the community on the appropriate places to go so that the hospital can make sure the emergency room is prepared for emergencies. The Red Cross is operating a shelter at Oak Hill Methodist Church, located at 2239 N.C. Hwy 181, Morganton.

Paxson said the Red Cross has a generator that can power oxygen equipment at the shelter.

Paxson said the hospital has seen an increase in trauma incidents as people clear trees and debris, as well as from car wrecks.

"We need to make sure that our emergency room is preserved to care for those true emergencies," Paxson said.

For instance, on Tuesday, Paxson said a man who was involved in a mud slide was brought in to the Morganton hospital. He survived.

"I believe, tragically, over the next several days, and even weeks, that we don't know the extent of the damage in our surrounding region, and we're going to have to be prepared for a lot of different events, including loss of life, loss of homes, loss of property, for sure," Paxson said. "So I don't think we know the depth of that yet. As power comes on and resources continue to come into the area, I think those will become more evident, and we will just have to take it a day at a time and process accordingly."

Paxson said a special thanks to emergency responders, linemen, power companies, internet companies and others who have worked to help the community through the storm.

"The communities have come together. The state has come together in amazing ways," Paxson said. "I'm proud to be part of this community."