LOCAL NEWS
RIVERGEE COUNTY – A worsening roof leakage crisis at the Gbeapo Comprehensive Health Center has forced health authorities to relocate the facility’s Peace Ward to a much smaller room, disrupting healthcare services, reducing patient capacity, and exposing patients, caregivers, and medical personnel to increasingly difficult conditions.
By: Ben TC Brooks – Reporter Voice of RiverGee
According to engineers who assessed the building, complete rehabilitation of the facility will cost more than US$50,000. The project will require approximately 94 bundles of roofing sheets, additional cement blocks to raise sections of the roof, and a complete redesign of the roofing system to ensure proper drainage.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Voice of RiverGee on July 11, 2026, the Medical Director of Gbeapo Comprehensive Health Center, Dr. Milton B.Z. Nyema, said the facility’s annual operational budget of approximately US$24,000 is far from sufficient to finance such a major rehabilitation project.
He noted that even allocating two years’ worth of the hospital’s operating budget would still fall short of the amount required.
Dr. Nyema also disclosed that the health center spends significant resources on ambulance repairs and fuel to operate its generator because the facility’s solar energy system performs poorly during extended periods of cloudy and rainy weather.
Although the hospital benefits from the Community Revolving Drug Fund (CRDF), he emphasized that those funds are primarily intended to support healthcare delivery and cannot adequately finance major infrastructure rehabilitation.
Whenever heavy rain falls, relatives of patients are forced to place buckets, basins, pans, and other containers on hospital beds and across ward floors to collect water pouring through the damaged roof. Their efforts are aimed at protecting patients, mattresses, medicines, medical equipment, and hospital records from being soaked.
The deteriorating conditions have resulted in overcrowding, limited bed space, and mounting pressure on healthcare workers who continue to provide essential medical services despite the challenges.
Located in the commercial hub of River Gee County, the Gbeapo Comprehensive Health Center is one of the county’s busiest public health facilities. The center serves thousands of residents within the Gbeapo Statutory District and surrounding administrative districts, as well as travelers, miners, and business operators, making it a vital healthcare institution for the county.
Dr. Nyema described the situation as alarming and warned that continued rainfall could cause even greater damage if urgent rehabilitation is not undertaken.
According to him, the leaking roof now threatens expensive medical equipment, life-saving medicines, patient records, and, most importantly, the safety of patients and healthcare workers.
He disclosed that during a recent visit to the health facility, House Speaker Richard Nagbe Koon was informed about the hospital’s deteriorating infrastructure.
“The Speaker requested that we prepare a cost estimate and submit it through River Gee County District One Representative Alexander Poure to his office. We completed the estimate and submitted it several months ago, and we remain hopeful that assistance will come,” Dr. Nyema said.
He further revealed that the Ministry of Health’s Infrastructure Development Unit has also inspected the facility and submitted its technical assessment, while the hospital continues to await intervention.
Dr. Nyema explained that the problem is not the age of the building or the roofing sheets but a major structural flaw in the original roof design.
“The engineers explained that the roof is almost flat. So, during heavy rainfall, water cannot drain properly. Instead, it accumulates on the roofing sheets until it begins leaking throughout the building.”
He admitted that every approaching rainstorm leaves him deeply concerned.
“Whenever I see dark clouds gathering, my greatest concern is the safety of our patients, our staff, and the medical equipment entrusted to our care.”
The Medical Director is now appealing to the River Gee County Legislative Caucus, the Ministry of Health, county authorities, development partners, humanitarian organizations, private institutions, philanthropists, and well-meaning Liberians to urgently intervene before conditions deteriorate further.
Meanwhile, patients and caregivers say the leaking roof has turned every heavy rainfall into an anxious experience.
Mother Esther Weah of Gbeapo Jaytuken recalled accompanying her granddaughter to the facility for childbirth.
“By God’s grace, my granddaughter delivered safely. But during the night while she was in labor, heavy rain began falling. Caregivers had to place buckets, pans, and other containers on patient beds and beside them to collect the leaking water and keep the beds and floors from becoming soaked.”
She appealed to county leaders to urgently save the health facility.
“I appeal to our county administration, the Legislative Caucus, especially Representative Alexander Poure, Senator Jonathan Boycharles Sogbie, and all our leaders to help save this hospital. It is the main health facility many of us depend on. They should not wait until it completely deteriorates before taking action because it is we, the citizens, who suffer whenever healthcare services are disrupted.”
When contacted, River Gee County Health Officer Dr. Pauline Weah Mehdeh confirmed the deteriorating condition of the facility and described it as deeply concerning.
“The current condition of the facility is truly embarrassing for us as the county’s health authorities.”
Dr. Mehdeh thanked the Minister of Health for dispatching the Ministry’s Infrastructure Development Unit to assess the damage and expressed optimism that intervention would soon follow. However, she stressed that addressing the crisis will require collective action.
“We are appealing to the county leadership and all relevant stakeholders to recognize the urgency of the situation and provide support. The Ministry of Health cannot do it alone. Protecting and improving our health facilities is a shared responsibility, and we need everyone to work together to restore this important institution.”
As the rainy season intensifies across southeastern Liberia, particularly in River Gee County, residents are hoping for swift intervention to rehabilitate the damaged roof, return the Peace Ward to its original location, and restore a safe environment for patients and healthcare workers.
The unfolding crisis at the Gbeapo Comprehensive Health Center highlights the urgent need for sustained investment in rural healthcare infrastructure.
While healthcare workers continue serving their communities with dedication, deteriorating public health facilities and limited financial resources remain significant obstacles to delivering quality medical care.
For many residents of River Gee County, repairing the Gbeapo Comprehensive Health Center is no longer simply an infrastructure project. It is an urgent investment in protecting lives, preserving human dignity, and ensuring that every citizen has access to safe and dependable healthcare.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally written and photos produced by Voice of RiverGee, a RiverGee County based media institution.
