Mission Hospital and other HCA facilities have rejoined Asheville’s municipal water supply and are no longer trucking in water or relying on well water, officials announced Monday.
While the city regained clean tap water post-Helene on Nov. 18, Mission teams needed time to transition back, according to a press release sent Monday.
The health care system conducted independent testing of the municipal water before switching back and results found the supply is safe, leaders said.
“Because of the support from HCA Healthcare, Mission Hospital and our five acute care community hospitals were able to remain open to care for our neighbors throughout the storm and its devastating aftermath,” Mission Health CEO Greg Lowe said in a press release.
An estimated 14 million gallons of water were used from tanker trucks or from the two wells that were drilled on the property in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
The hospital says it used more than 200,000 gallons of water each day during the storm, including water needed in operating rooms.
In the first week after Helene hit the region, nearly 200 patients were treated at a tent facility set up by federal disaster medical assistance teams, BPR reported.
The temporary facility alleviated overcrowding in Mission’s emergency department, where capacity at one time was at 200%, according to HCA officials who spoke at a press conference on Oct. 4.
Lowe says that HCA Healthcare’s scale as the largest health care system in the country allowed it to provide timely resources during the disaster.
“Without HCA Healthcare’s scale and ability to deliver under immense pressure, Mission Health facilities would have been otherwise forced to close,” Lowe said in Monday’s press release.
HCA has been criticized by local officials for declining “quality of care” and other grievances since the for-profit hospital system purchased Mission Health System in 2019. Buncombe County and others have sued the system with ongoing cases at the state and federal level. HCA Healthcare has denied the allegations and, according to the Asheville Citizen Times, is seeking dismissal of the federal lawsuit.
