20211109 Bhopal: Four kids die after fire in Kamala Nehru Hospital
India Nov 09 2021 “Building” “Hospitals”
Dead : dead 1 to 4 Burnout : 1 to 29 Injured : injured 0 or unknown
Bhopal: Four kids die after fire in Kamala Nehru Hospital
Updated: 2021-11-09
BHOPAL: Four babies died after a fire erupted in the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of Kamala Nehru Hospital in Bhopal on Monday night. There were 40 children admitted at the time.
Officials initially said there were no deaths, but CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan tweeted the tragic news shortly after midnight: “The fire was put out but three of the children, who were severely ill, could not be saved. It is unbearably painful. My prayers are with their families.” ACS-health Mohammad Suleman will investigate the fire, the CM said.
Around half an hour later, medical education minister Vishwas Sarang put the toll at four. “There were 40 children in the ward, of whom 36 are safe. An ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh will be given to the parents of each dead child,” said Sarang.
A hospital employee alerted the control room about the fire at 8.40pm. A dozen fire engines rushed to the site, along with teams from Kohe-Fiza police station.
Power went off and the hospital back-up didn’t kick in immediately, say sources.
Smoke engulfed the building, triggering panic among patients’ relatives, who ran inside to save them. Chaos broke out in the darkened, smoke-filled corridors, and security staff forced the patients’ relatives out. They kept arguing and pleading with police to be allowed in to check on their babies. “The flames and burning wires caused chaos, and smog engulfed the floor,” said BMC fire officer Rameshwar Neel. SP (north) Vijay Khatri said the fire was quickly brought under control with the help of 25 fire tenders from Fatehgarh, Bairagarh and Shahjehanabad stations.
“Children from PICU have been shifted to another ward and there were no casualties,” Khatri had said around 11pm.
The surviving children and six adults were shifted to other wards. Some nurses and staff are believed to have suffered smoke inhalation.
Neel said an electric short circuit may have triggered the fire. MP medical education minister Vishwas Sarang rushed to the hospital and was present during the firefight. “The rescue effort was rapid. A high-level inquiry has been ordered. ACS-health Mohammad Suleman will head the investigation,” the CM said.
Web Source: The Times of India