A major water main break that occurred overnight on Décarie Boulevard in Montreal is causing cancellations of surgeries and appointments at the Glen site of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC). Ambulances are being diverted to other hospitals.
The water main break, which occurred at 1:30 a.m. Friday at the intersection of Décarie Boulevard and Maisonneuve Street, caused the flooding of a viaduct. Access to the MUHC via Décarie Boulevard is closed.
“This affects the drinking water at the MUHC Glen site and has a significant impact throughout the hospital,” said MUHC spokesperson Gilda Salomone.
The affected facilities are the Royal Victoria Hospital, the Montreal Children’s Hospital, the Cedars Cancer Centre, the Montreal Chest Institute and the MUHC Research Institute.
“We are asking people who have a scheduled appointment at a clinic or surgery not to come to the site this Friday,” said Gilda Salomone. “We will contact these patients as soon as possible.”
Staff who come to the MUHC by car are asked to use Saint-Jacques Street to access the parking lot.
The MUHC is preparing a contingency plan to deal with the situation during the day.
A sector to avoid
The City of Montreal is asking motorists to avoid Décarie Boulevard, between Sherbrooke and Crowley streets.
The water department and the borough of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce are working to repair the break in this local pipe in order to restore drinking water to the MUHC as quickly as possible, it was reported.