Maharashtra: 22 dead after oxygen tank leaks outside Nashik hospital
Twenty-two people died after an oxygen tanker leaked outside a hospital in Nashik, Maharashtra today, causing the supply of oxygen to be halted there for around 30 minutes, reports said. The tragic incident happened at the city's Zakir Hussain Hospital. Fire trucks were rushed to the spot to contain the leak. Here are more details on this.
31 patients shifted to other hospitals
Around 31 patients of the total 80 who need oxygen have since been shifted to other hospitals, NDTV reported. Visuals from the hospital show the gas leaking rapidly from the tanker and covering the entire area in white fumes. The gas leak led to widespread panic among patients and their family members as oxygen supply was stopped.
Here is a video of the incident
Patients who were on ventilators died: Health Minister
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope said that the deaths could be linked to the oxygen supply halt. "As per the information available with us, 11 patients who were on ventilators at the hospital in Nashik have died. The leakage was spotted at the oxygen tank which was supplying oxygen to these patients. The interrupted supply could be linked to the deaths," Tope earlier said.
'Those responsible must be punished'
Meanwhile, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Majeed Memon tweeted about the incident saying that the people responsible for the leak must be punished. "Leakage of oxygen from tanker in Nasik has caused loss of several liters of oxygen and panic in the Hospital. Those responsible for negligence must be identified and punished (sic)," Memon tweeted.
Maharashtra, other states facing acute shortage of oxygen
The incident has come at a time when Maharashtra and several other states across India have been facing an acute shortage of medical oxygen to treat COVID-19 patients amid spiralling cases. India has been severely hit by the ongoing second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, reporting lakhs of new infections and hundreds of deaths daily for the past few days.
