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Memorial Health expanding heart care facilities
Memorial Health
Memorial Health is based in Savannah.
Special to the Couirer
Updated: Apr 3, 2018, 10:30 AM
Published: Apr 2, 2018, 3:21 PM

SAVANNAH — Memorial Health recently submitted a letter of intent to the Georgia Department of Community Health for a $30 million renovation to its Heart and Vascular Institute tower.

"This investment demonstrates HCA Healthcare’s commitment to realize the vision of Memorial’s leadership and community for a dedicated heart and vascular building on our campus," Memorial Health CEO Shayne George said. "Once this project is complete, all five floors of the tower will be fully operational to provide exceptional care for our patients and their families."

The planned renovation will build out the third and fourth floors of the tower to accommodate 58 private, inpatient rooms.

Since 1967, when Dr. Thomas Yeh performed the first open heart surgery in Savannah, Memorial has been treating heart disease in southeast Georgia. The $45 million, 189,000 square-foot Heart and Vascular Institute tower opened in December 2005 to house cardiovascular and critical care services. In January 2015, Memorial opened the fifth floor of the tower, the Spellman-Thomas Wing, which expanded the Heart and Vascular Institute by 32 beds — six cardiovascular ICU beds and 26 step-down beds.

Memorial Health provides the region’s only Level I trauma center for the most acute illness and injuries, as well as dedicated children’s, cancer and heart hospitals to serve a 35-county area in southeast Georgia and southern South Carolina. The system includes its flagship hospital – Memorial Health University Medical Center - a 612-bed academic medical center; Memorial Health University Physicians’ primary and specialty care networks; a major medical education program; business and industry services; and NurseOne, a 24-hour call center. Memorial Health is a part of the HCA Healthcare family, the largest provider of care in the United States and the UK.

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GPA grows trade, market share
Intermodal volume up 20 percent
port photo
Rubber tired gantry cranes handle cargo at the Chatham Intermodal Container Transfer Facility at the Port of Savannah. The Georgia Ports Authority's Mason Mega Rail project will double rail lift capacity to 1 million containers per year by 2020 - photo by Provided
Staff Report
Updated: Apr 17, 2018, 1:07 PM
Published: Apr 17, 2018, 1:08 PM

The Georgia Ports Authority achieved 14 percent growth in March container volumes, moving 355,208 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers.

From July 2017 to March, TEU container trade grew by 9 percent, or 255,786 additional units for a total of 3.08 million, a new record for Savannah.

"Savannah's continued strength is a reflection of our customers' commitment, Georgia's leadership, and the many dedicated service providers, GPA employees and ILA members who come together every day to achieve great things," said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. "March marked our 17th consecutive month of business expansion thanks, in part, to a strong economy and growing market share."

Intermodal rail volumes jumped by 20 percent in March and 15.4 percent for the fiscal year to date, for a total of 318,454 containers handled over nine months – another record for the GPA.

"As the numbers show, our rail cargo is growing at a faster pace than our overall trade," GPA Chairman Jimmy Allgood said. "This is important because rail is playing a key role in our responsible growth strategy. We anticipate our rail infrastructure investments to take 250,000 trucks off the road each year by 2020."

The GPA recently broke ground on its Mason Mega Rail Terminal, on which the Port of Savannah will build 10,000-foot unit trains within its own footprint. From the expanded rail infrastructure at Garden City Terminal, Class I rail providers CSX and Norfolk Southern will provide direct rail service to major Southeast and Midwestern markets from Memphis to St. Louis, Chicago to Cincinnati.

An added benefit is that the Mason Mega Rail project will move all rail switching on terminal – improving vehicle traffic flow around the port.

In August, the GPA will open its Appalachian Regional Port in Murray County. Located in an industrial belt, including the production and export of carpet and flooring, automobiles and tires, the ARP will provide an alternative to all-truck transit to Northwest Georgia.

Each round-trip container moved via the Appalachian Regional Port will offset 710 truck miles on Georgia highways.

March was also a strong month for roll-on/roll-off auto and machinery units at the Port of Brunswick and Ocean Terminal in Savannah. Colonel's Island Terminal in Brunswick handled 66,144 cars, trucks and tractors, while Ocean Terminal added 4,050, for a total 70,194, a 17.2 percent increase.

"The global economy is thriving and our volumes are following suit," Lynch said. "As existing accounts grow their footprint in the expanding auto facility in Brunswick, Georgia's competitive logistical advantages are drawing additional business across all of our docks."

Lynch noted that for the fiscal year to date, Mayor's Point breakbulk terminal in Brunswick grew by 44 percent (34,515 tons) to reach 112,728 tons of forest products. At East River Terminal, bulk cargo expanded by 34 percent July-March (189,918 tons) for a total of 750,384 tons.

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