Walking blood donors, bathtubs filled with water: How island hospitals are preparing for Hurricane Irma

As Hurricane Irma continues its path of destruction, the next areas to be hit are preparing for the worst after seeing the complete devastation the storm left in Barbuda and Saint Martin.

• Hurricane Irma kills 11, injures dozens as it flattens Caribbean islands

Those preparations have many hospitals in lockdown mode, taking extraordinary measures to cope with the situation, according to a top executive at a hospital in the hurricane's path,who is originally from Toronto.

Pregnant women admitted as precaution

"We're asking all mothers who are 36 weeks gestation to come into the hospital now," said Daniel Carriere, the CEO of both hospitals in Turks and Caicos. Between the two hospitals, 31 mothers have been admitted.

"I'm not sure that any mother ever bargained to be delivering a newborn in these types of circumstances," he said, adding that because of limited capacity, "we can't bring the entire family here with the mother." That raises additional concerns for the soon-to-be moms, but he assuredthey "will be well taken care of."

Hospital staff are'walkingdonors'

One major concern is blood supply, something Carriere explainedis always a concern for the two hospitals, but particularly in emergency situations. He's preparing for this situation with what he calls "walking donors."

"We know the blood types of all the staff and if we have to require units of blood on an emergency basis, either for surgery or the emergency department we're going to bring them in," he said. Carriere himself was set to donate blood on Thursday afternoon to help with the supply.

Hurricane Irma is expected to hit the island on Thursday evening, before it sets its sights on Florida. The former CEO for Southlake Hospital in Newmarket and Humber River Regional Hospital in York Region moved to the island two years ago, but said he's never seen this type of uneasiness among staff and patients.

This is a monster and they've not dealt with this, many people here have never dealt with this.- Daniel Carriere, CEO Interhealth Canada, Turks and Caicos and Carribean

"Everyone is very concerned and very serious about this storm," he said, explaining that everyone is doing as much as they can but they recognize this is a category five storm. "This is a monster and they've not dealt with this, many people here have never dealt with this."

Water shut off as of noon

Another major concern is the water supply in the hospital. As of noon, the water was shut off in Providenciales, the city that houses the island's largest hospital something Carriere called a real "wild card."

"We're rationing right now," he explained, adding that the water isn't just to take care of in-patients but also for staff to keep hydrated, and simple things like flushing toilets and taking showers.

"We have a reserve tank and what we've done is we're centrally hoarding water andwater bottles," he said. "We've got any bathtub we could fill here, filled."That said, water bottle supply islimited, due in part to stores having shut down.

Fortunately, electricity is less of a concern as the hospital has generators and enough diesel to sustain itself for a few days, he explained.

'No one has ever seen anything of the likes of Irma'

Having spent most of his life inCanada, Carriere said he's never dealt with this type of storm but has been through emergency situations, noting the 2003province-wide blackout he experienced while working in Newmarket.

We've got any bathtub we could fill here, filled.- DanielCarriere, CEOInterhealthCanada, Turks and Caicos andCarribean

"It's all about organization, having a plan and preparing and training for the eventuality," he explained. "We go through the training drills, we do it on an ongoing basis and we hope that we will be prepared for when something happens."

But he cautions, "no one has ever seen anything of the likes of Irma."

Carriere praised his more than 120 staff locked down in the hospitals, saying "they're making a big sacrifice."

"They're worried about the patients that they're responsible for, their colleaguesand last but not least, they're worried about who's left at home," he explained. The hospitals's employees come from all over the world he added, including Canada, the U.S., Great Britain and Bermuda.

For the latest Hurricane Irma coverage, continue to follow CBC News online, on Twitter, Facebook, CBC News Network and CBC Radio.

Have you been affected by Hurricane Irma? Email us.