Keesler Air Force Base upgrades

BILOXI, Miss. (AP) - Keesler Medical Center is getting a face lift.

Two months into the $32.3 million project to modernize the Biloxi facility, medical personnel can expect construction disruptions, while visitors will notice contractors on rooftops and
hanging from scaffolding.

Stephen Pivnick, chief of public affairs for the 81st Medical Group, says the majority of work inside the medical center will occur in equipment rooms, elevator shafts and other spots that are
generally out-of-site from the public.

A completion date of February 2011 has been set.

The project will also address the remaining damage to buildings caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

According to the military base's Web site, Keesler Medical Center provides healthcare for 10,831 active duty and 47,102 eligible local beneficiaries in a 40-mile radius of the base.