La Jolla : Lights Went Out but VA Hospital, Patients Made Do

Veterans Administration Hospital workers Tuesday were forced to manually pump oxygen to seven patients on respirators and ventilators when a power outage hit and a backup generator failed, officials said.

Despite the problems, there were no medical complications caused by the power outage, although two operations were being performed at the time, said Barbara Small, hospital director.

The power went out at the La Jolla hospital and about 1,000 surrounding homes at 10 a.m. Power was off for about 90 minutes before San Diego Gas & Electric crews restored it, SDG&E; general foreman Rafael Garcia said.

An emergency generator at the hospital failed to start because of a faulty air valve, a hospital spokesman said. Hospital workers used hand pumps to keep oxygen flowing to the seven patients until the San Diego Fire Department arrived with portable generators.

The most critical problem involved a patient recovering from heart surgery who was on an intra-aortic balloon pump, which assists the heart in pumping blood. Although the patient could survive without the balloon pump, it was given top priority for a portable generator to ease stress on his heart, a hospital official said.

The hospital turned on a battery-powered support system that was able to sustain operating room lights and equipment for two hours, allowing surgeons to finish operations on one person’s abdomen and another’s ankle, the official said. The outage caused a backlog of surgeries, a hospital official said.

No cause for the outage has been established, an SDG&E; official said.

The hospital’s emergency generator failed to respond during a power outage 18 months ago when the motor failed, the hospital official said. He said the generator was repaired and rebuilt four months ago and an inspection last week turned up no problems.