FAIRMONT, W.Va. — Gov. Jim Justice emerged from a Thursday afternoon meeting with officials at Fairmont Regional Medical Center and promised to work hard to save the facility but stopped short of guaranteeing he could.

Justice and several state lawmakers traveled to Fairmont for the meeting that came after FRMC owner Alecto announced Tuesday plans to close the operation after attempts to find a new owner failed.

Justice said he was able to see some of the financial numbers for the first time Thursday and said you can’t blame Alecto for making the business decision it did but that doesn’t mean the hospital can’t survive under another arrangement.

“I’m going to try and save the hospital,” Justice said. “I don’t know if we can pull it off but we’ve got to find a way to accomplish that.”

More than 600 doctors, nurses and staff are receiving 60-day layoff notices. Some fear the hospital could close before then.

“To save it you have to get it to a place where it’s sustainable from an economic standpoint and a service standpoint,” Justice said. “Out of state people say we can’t deal with that. You can’t blame them for that.”

While Justice and the others were traveling to Fairmont, the House of Delegates passed a resolution calling for state Attorney General Patrick Morrisey to investigate the business practices of Alecto. The California-based company closed Ohio Valley Medical Center in Wheeling last fall.

MORE read resolution here

Resolution lead sponsor Delegate Erikka Storch, R-Ohio, told MetroNews they want Morrisey to see if there’s “any kind of trend or any kind of laws that have been broken in the state of West Virginia.”

Alecto came to the legislature three years ago seeking help with the OVMC property, Storch said.

“We possibly had blinders on when they came to use in 2017, thinking this would be a savior that would help with keeping OVMC open. It appears this is a typical operation they like to utilize,” Storch said.

According to the resolution, “With Alecto’s purchase of OVMC, the city of Wheeling agreed to pay $1.5 million for capital repairs and provide another $1.5 million to demolish old buildings on the properties.”

Justice said Thursday he’s not interested in saving just a few jobs at Fairmont Regional. He said he wants to save all of them.

“I’m a business guy. I now see what has to be done. You have to give me a couple days to see if I can work something out,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mon Health System will be in Fairmont Monday for a job fair. Mon Health President and CEO David Goldberg said they are hiring for all positions.

“No one there at Fairmont needs to worry about not finding (a job) in any position,” Goldberg told WAJR Radio Thursday. “Apply for a job and you’ll get one.”

Goldberg said they talked with Alecto about a possible agreement but couldn’t reach one.

“We had discussions about what their needs were long term and what we could do. We offered some options. They were not, I think, what Alecto was looking for and that’s fine, it’s their business and they have run it the way they need to,” Goldberg said.

Goldberg said the building in Fairmont has some physical plant issues.

“I was concerned a little bit about what that would look like for us and what obligations it would take for Mon (Mon Health) to step up and maintain that,” Goldberg said.

Justice said Thursday he feared other hospitals in the state could be closing unless something is done.

“If we don’t watch out we’re going to lose hospital after hospital after hospital,” he said, but again stopping short of guaranteeing a solution for Fairmont.

“I’m not going to promise you a fantasy land that’s absolutely doable,” he said. “I’m going home with all of this data and I’m going to work to solve the riddle.”