Dangerous wind chills on their way to Northeast

UPMC to build 7-story patient care tower at Erie hospital

ERIE, Pa. (AP) — The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center says it's adding a new $111 million patient care tower to a northwestern Pennsylvania hospital to accommodate a growing number of patients. UPMC Hamot officials say the expansion project announced Thursday will be the largest in the Erie hospital's 135-year history. UPMC says the seven-story building will be 177,000 square feet. It'll be located between the main hospital and Magee-Womens, UPMC Hamot. The project includes more than 60 intensive care unit beds and an expansion of the imaging department. Plans also call for upgrading the central plant and shell space for future needs. Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2018 and be completed in late 2020.