Ahmedabad: Fire breaks out at COVID hospital, eight dead
In a terrible piece of news, eight people, including five men and three women, died at a coronavirus-dedicated hospital in Ahmedabad due to a fire early this morning. The incident took place at Shrey Hospital, situated in the Navrangpura area of the Gujarat city. At least 40 patients, who were suffering from COVID-19, have been rescued and shifted to another facility. Here's more.
Dense smoke took lives of all critical patients: Reports
The blaze started around 3:30 am, possibly due to a short-circuit, in the ICU unit of the hospital. Soon, several fire tenders were pressed to service to douse the fire. Reports said the smoke inside the poorly-ventilated ICU was so dense that it killed all the critical patients. A staff member, in PPE, who went to attend a patient also caught fire.
CM Vijay Rupani has ordered a probe
After the horrible news surfaced, Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani ordered an investigation. Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Sangeeta Singh and ACS (Urban Development) Mukesh Puri will probe the incident and file a report. Meanwhile, police recorded the statement of the aforementioned staff member, who managed to save himself from the deadly fire. Fire officials commented that they hadn't seen anything like this before.
Saddened by the tragic fire: PM Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who served as Gujarat's CM for more than a decade, expressed grief over the mishap. "Saddened by the tragic hospital fire in Ahmedabad. Condolences to the bereaved families. May the injured recover soon," he tweeted. PM Modi said he spoke to Rupani and Ahmedabad Mayor Bijal Patel. "Administration is providing all possible assistance to the affected," he added.
Rs. 2L for kin of deceased, Rs. 50,000 for injured
Another tweet from Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said that an ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh each will be given from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) to the kin of the deceased. "Rs. 50,000 each would be given to those injured due to the hospital fire," the tweet informed. Notably, at 66,777 total coronavirus cases, Gujarat recorded 2,552 deaths.
