For the second time in two weeks the emergency room will be closed overnight at the Ashcroft Hospital.

The closure is due to a temporary staffing shortage according to the Interior Health Authority. It will last 12 hours beginning at 8 p.m. on Sunday.

The Ashcroft Hospital’s ER is only open from 6 p.m. on Fridays to 8 a.m. on Mondays, and therefore after the next closure it will resume normal hours at 6 p.m. on Feb 15.

The ER room at the hospital was also closed on Jan. 27 and has now been closed due to a staffing shortage five times in the past eight months, dating back to late June of 2018.

IHA says people in Ashcroft who need the ER should visit hospitals in Kamloops, Merritt or Lillooet.