The Glass Fire is still burning in Napa County but CAL FIRE has reined in the fire to 74% containment as of Friday morning.
St. Helena Hospital, which was evacuated when the fire first started, is still closed after sustaining some significant damage.
Saving the 151-bed acute care hospital in Deer Park was a herculean effort. The campus dates back 142 years and sits on a sprawling wooded campus.
“About 150 power poles were damaged or destroyed completely in the fire… and the fire went right through areas where our water pipe was and melted sections of that,” said hospital president Dr. Steven Herber.
Some of its housing for medical workers was lost to the flames as well.
“We did have five units that were destroyed,” said Dr. Herber. “But over 60 units of hospital housing were also saved. And so we’re very grateful, we do feel blessed. It’s pretty amazing when you look at all of the devastation in that region.”
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The hospital campus has its own fire department, which was able to save most of the buildings even as much of the town burned.
Now the work is starting to repair the damaged water and electrical systems. Adventist Health, which runs the hospital, has reopened clinics in Calistoga and St. Helena but the hospital is expected to stay closed for another month.
“All of our teams are working remotely to get hospital systems back online so we can open up as soon as we are allowed,” said Dr. Herber. “We’re so thankful and we’re just focused on getting this ready to welcome the community back on campus.”