By Mark McConville
EERIE images have revealed the abandoned hospital that looks like it just closed yesterday despite being shut for close to a decade.
The striking pictures show the medical equipment left behind including an MRI machine as well as fully furnished patient rooms with beds and chairs still in place.
Other spooky snaps show the exterior of the hospital, an office with a stocked bookcase and long hallway with a gurney abandoned near the wall.
The remarkable photographs were taken at a small rural hospital that was closed in 2010 by an urban explorer known as Abandoned Southeast.
“The hospital was one of the largest employers in the area but struggled due to a lack of patients,” he said.
“Some weeks the hospital only had one or two patients but the facility had over two dozen beds.
“Coupled a big drop in local funding, county officials had no choice but to close the facility and hope they could one day reopen.
“Almost 100 employees lost their jobs as a result of the hospital closing. Since county officials hoped to one day reopen, none of the equipment was sold or removed.
“The hospital remains fully stocked as if they just shut the doors yesterday. There was even expired food left behind in the kitchen pantry.”
Since 2010, 82 rural hospitals have closed across the United States. The reasons are complex, however these closures are hitting southern states the hardest.
In a rural small town, a critical care hospital sits shuttered. With millions in debt, the local government elected to close the hospital almost a decade ago.
Locals asked the county to keep the hospital open, stating without it many residents would be forced to drive an hour to go to the hospital.
For more information see www.abandonedsoutheast.com
