T-L Photo/GAGE VOTA The former Dollar General store that is now owned by Dr. John Johnson, who also owns the recently closed East Ohio Regional Hospital, is surrounded with caution tape after pieces of its facade fell to the ground. City leaders fear the building’s deterioration could lead to a serious injury or death if not addressed.

MARTINS FERRY — Mayor John Davies told Martins Ferry City Council his “heart breaks” when he thinks about the recent closing of East Ohio Regional Hospital.

He added that earlier in the week, members of the Martins Ferry Volunteer Fire Department were at EORH to ensure nobody was on the premises before AEP Ohio turned off all power to the facility that closed its doors on March 21.

“Chief I Ron Hilton got in contact with the state fire marshal office, and we were advised that if power was cut from the structure, that it had to be evacuated first. Nobody could be in there on a day-to-day operation,” Martins Ferry Chief II Justin Smith said.

“Ron Hilton, myself and two other captains in the department showed up, assisted in making sure everybody was out of the building prior to our departure, and that’s why we were there. They cannot operate on a diesel generator or operate on battery power. … It wasn’t an emergency situation or anything like that. All the power was cut. We had to be there.”

AEP briefly turned off the power to the hospital on Tuesday. A few doctors were still practicing at the site and attached buildings despite the closure of the hospital.

Dr. Alfred Dunn, previously said that he discovered the hospital was running on emergency generator power when he came in at 8 a.m. Tuesday morning. He said he heard about the shutoff from hospital administration. The few healthcare providers who were still on site then had to scramble to move their office materials out of the building before the power was shut off again Wednesday morning.

Davies added that although it is a devastating situation for the community and for hospital staff, he was informed that EORH owner Dr. John Johnson is working on a deal with a potential buyer.

“We’re hoping that it gets sold and we can move forward,” Davies said.

“Another one of Mr. Johnson’s properties, the old dollar store (Dollar General on South Fourth Street), had a piece of it come down onto the street. We’re addressing that now, and we blocked it off. Somebody’s gonna have to do something … because the facade is going to come off of it. It’s got a big crack in the side of it now, so it’s unsafe.”

He added that due to it being a major hazard to the community, he is taking aggressive action to ensure that the structure is fixed before anyone is injured by falling debris.

“It’s a safety hazard, it’s right downtown,” Davies said. “If it becomes a hazard to where it’s going to land on the street and possibly kill somebody, we will need to take the building down, and we’ll do whatever we have to do to protect the people.”

He added that due to Martins Ferry Law Director Paul Stecker being absent for the meeting, he will have to reach out and schedule a meeting with him about the structure at his earliest convenience.

Meanwhile, residents Richard Hord and Frank Papini took the opportunity to ask council and the administration about a variety of issues.