8 killed in fire at private Covid-19 hospital in Guj
Families of patients hit out at the hospital, say they learnt of the fire from the media
AHMEDABAD: Eight coronavirus patients died in a fire that broke out inside the intensive care unit (ICU) ward of a private hospital in Ahmedabad in the early hours of Thursday, officials said. A paramedical staff of the hospital was also injured.
A blaze broke out around 3.30am on the top floor of the fourstorey Shrey Hospital in Navrangpura area, officials said, adding that a short circuit was the cause.
It is one of the 60-odd designated private hospitals to treat coronavirus patients. “Eight coronavirus patients admitted to the ICU ward on the fourth floor of Shrey Hospital have died due to fire. 41 other Covid-19 patients, who were in the general ward on bottom floors, were rescued and shifted to SVP Hospital,” said Rajiv Kumar Gupta, an officer on special duty of IAS rank.
The deceased were identified as Lilavati Shah (72), Jyoti Sindhi (55), Ayesha Tirmizi (51), Navneet Shah (80), Arif Mansoori (42), Narendra Shah (62), Arvind Bhavsar (78) and Manu Rami (82).
A cumulative compensation of ₹6 lakh each for the families of the deceased — five men and three women — was announced by the Centre and Gujarat government.
Angry relatives of coronavirus patients admitted to the hospital alleged they were not informed about the incident and found out about the same from media reports. As the hospital was sealed for investigation, some of them were still clueless on the status of their relatives.
“My grandfather was admitted four days ago. The hospital had our contact numbers, but nobody called us to inform that he died in the fire,” said the relative of a victim, adding that he learnt of the fire from a news channel.
A relative of two Covid-19 patients who were shifted to a civic-run hospital after the fire said he was still clueless about their condition. “My mother and elder brother were admitted to Shrey Hospital three days ago. It was only after my colleague called me up in the morning that I learnt about the fire,” he said.
By the time he reached the hospital, the two had been shifted. “I called my brother, but he is not answering his phone. I do not know how they are doing; my mother has breathing problems,” he said.
The officer on special duty, Rajiv Kumar Gupta, municipal commissioner Mukesh Kumar and principal secretary (health) Jayanti Ravi visited the spot. “We have learned that an electric short circuit led to a blast. The blaze spread in the ward within minutes,” said Kumar.
According to Chirag Patel, a hospital attendant who saved the lives of three elderly patients, there were 11 patients on the fourth floor when the fire broke out.
Chief minister Vijay Rupani has ordered an inquiry by the additional chief secretary (home) Sangeeta Singh and her counterpart in the Urban Development Department, Mukesh Puri. The two IAS officers have been asked to submit the inquiry report in three days, the CM’S office said in a statement.
Deputy CM Nitin Patel said that another attendant received 25 to 30 per cent burn injuries while trying to save the patients. The attendant and 41 patients were shifted to SVP Hospital, he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the incident and announced ex-gratia compensation of ₹2 lakh for the kin of the deceased and ₹50,000 for the injured.
“Saddened by the tragic hospital fire in Ahmedabad. Condolences to the bereaved families. May the injured recover soon. Spoke to CM @vijayrupanibjp Ji and Mayor @ibijalpatel Ji regarding the situation. Administration is providing all possible assistance to the affected,” the PM tweeted. 67,811 50,322