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Montana National Guard Building Mobile Alternative Care Facility

A large warehouse holds stacks of plywood.
Kayla Desroches
/
Yellowstone Public Radio
Members of the Montana National Guard construct a mobile alternative care facility at MetraPark in Billings Apr. 30, 2020.

The Montana National Guard on Monday started building a mobile medical facility for non-COVID-19 patients in case regional medical centers see a surge in new illnesses caused by the novel coronavirus.

Around 30 National Guard members construct walls inside the Expo Center at MetraPark in Billings. When done, the walls will form roofless, back-to-back cubicles with curtains instead of doors.

The officer in charge, Major Juan Torres, says the spaces will include electricity and some plumbing.

“It’s gonna be as comfortable a room for patients as we can possibly make for them," Torres says.

This alternate care facility is one of many the National Guard is building across the United States in case local hospitals see an uptick in COVID-19 patients and need a seperate space for non-COVID-19 and non-acute patients. That would prevent exposure to the virus.

Torres says construction in Billings should conclude next week, after which the facility will be ready for transport.

“We can pack this up and bring it where anybody needs it," he says.

The National Guard says the mobile care facility costs around $140,000. As of yet, there aren’t any immediate plans to use it.

The Guard is also building alternate care facilities in other states, including Connecticut, Florida, Vermont and Washington State.

The State of Montana also signed off on an alternate care structure in Kalispell, which the National Guard says is a project through the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

 

Kayla writes about energy policy, the oil and gas industry and new electricity developments.