BERWICK — The state Department of Health has ordered Berwick Hospital to shut down its emergency room as of 7 a.m. Saturday because of a lack of staff, according to the department.

In a letter sent out to local government entities, the department wrote that while Berwick Hospital remains open, the emergency department has been ordered to suspend its services as of tomorrow morning, ban admissions and "require that the facility provide essential life saving measures and transfer patients that come to the hospital."

The emergency room had been set to close on Oct. 13, as hospital owner Priyam Sharma shutters the hospital, with plans to reopen it as a mental health facility.

We'll have more on the state order and efforts to keep hospital services available in Berwick in tomorrow's edition.