Naples hospital installs high-tech flood barrier to stay open during hurricanes

NAPLES, Fla. (WINK)—Hospitals in Southwest Florida are ditching sandbags for a high-tech flood protection system designed to keep emergency rooms open during hurricanes.

NCH North Naples Hospital installed a custom-made, four-foot fence system engineered to withstand storm surge and even a direct hit from a truck. The barrier is designed to protect critical infrastructure on the first floors of hospital campuses, where flooding could shut down life-saving operations.

"We realized that our campuses are at risk of flooding," said Jennifer Smith of NCH North Naples Hospital. "So, whether that's storm surge, excessive rain, whatever the cause is, we needed to do a better job to protect the infrastructure of the hospital on most first floors of both of our campuses."

The system has been tested in hurricane-force conditions, including winds up to 140 mph. Oscar Skjaerpe, vice president of sales for Aquafence, said the barrier has been rigorously evaluated for real-world scenarios.

"We've tested it for static water loads, hydrodynamic loads, impact testing with logs, canoes, and small vehicles," Skjaerpe said. "Tested it up to sustain winds of 140 miles per hour as well."

Once deployed, the fence locks into place using physics. Floodwater pressing down on horizontal panels creates vertical forces that anchor the system to the ground, making it nearly impossible to move.

"Once you have any types of flood waters on the horizontal panel here, just like I'm standing, the vertical forces will be greater than the horizontal forces, meaning that once we have, say, six inches or 12 inches of any type of flood waters on top of the system, it's not going anywhere," Skjaerpe said.

The technology has a proven track record. Skjaerpe said the company has only experienced two failures in 25 years of deployments.

During hurricanes Helene and Milton, Tampa General Hospital used the same system to stay operational. The hospital performed 30 major surgeries during the storms, including an organ transplant that would not have been possible without the flood protection.

The barrier isn't limited to hospitals. It can be deployed at any critical infrastructure site that cannot afford to shut down during a disaster.

For NCH staff preparing for the next storm, the system offers peace of mind. "We hope that this sincerely makes our patients and our community members feel safer," Smith said.

Hospital emergency management teams are trained to deploy the fences before major storms hit. Anchoring holes have been drilled into the ground around the campus to allow crews to quickly secure the barriers when needed.