PUNTA GORDA — Bill Dryburgh called it an emergency of major proportions and is asking for help spreading the message.
The former city councilman, fire chief and current member of the hospital’s board of trustees said everyone south of the Peace River in Punta Gorda may be affected by the closing of ShorePoint Hospital.
“It is permanently closed after Hurricane Milton,” Dryburgh said. “This is something that the residents living south of the river cannot live without.”
Dryburgh is adamant about the importance of having a hospital or at least an emergency room facility in the city. Medical help could be delayed if the bridges across the river at Interstate 75 or in Punta Gorda are closed.
“During this past hurricane season, a number of times the bridges across the river were closed,” Dryburgh said. “That meant if you had an emergency where seconds or minutes count, you have to drive all the way to I-75 and go around to get to a hospital.”
He said time wasted can be life-threatening.