A plumbing problem at the new Montreal Children's Hospital has led to black sewer water backing up drains in patient bathrooms.
Contractor SNC-Lavalin is the building’s landlord and is in charge of maintaining the building. A spokesperson from the company said the issue was caused by a mechanical break in one of the urinals He also said that plumbers have had to unclog 50 toilets at the Children's and says most of these cases are caused by a misuse of toilets, not a problem with the drainage system.
The Children's Hospital opened at the end of May and each room has its own private bathroom. There is a little drain on the floor and staff members have started to notice those drains backing up with black sewer water. Patients and visitors have complained of the stench caused by these backups.
“Those glitches are being corrected as we speak but obviously there are a few problems to resolve. I'm confident everything will be resolved in the next year -- the next months, actually,” said Health Minister Gaetan Barrette.
But since the hospital opened, the fix-it list has been getting longer. Officially there are 3,000 documented deficiencies at the hospital but some suggest that number is far higher.
