Indore: Panic at Medanta as firebreaks out in ICU

Indore

Panic prevailed among patients, hospital staff, and family members of the patients in Medanta Hospital on Sunday evening when a fire broke out in the medical ICU.

The ICU was engulfed in smoke and more than 13 patients faced difficulty in breathing including three patients on ventilators. However, a major mishap was averted as the hospital staff swung into action and shifted the patients immediately in another ICU.

The hospital management claimed that they swung into action after their fire alarm sounded. However, the eyewitnesses claimed that no fire alarm was sounded and family members of the patients informed the staff about smoke in the ICU.

Medanta Hospital medical superintendent Dr Sanjay Geed said that smoke was seen coming from an electric board near one of the beds in the ICU located on the fourth floor.
"We immediately heard the alarm and controlled the fire," he added.

Geed said that a total of 10 patients- at least 2-3 of them were on ventilators- were admitted to the ICU at the time of the incident. All of them are safe, he added.

Prima facie, the blaze was triggered due to short-circuit in the ICU, he said.

One of the eyewitnesses told the Free Press that the fire broke out in the electric socket of the dialysis machine on bed number 8 in the ICU after which smoke emanated in the ICU.

Collector launched probe
Collector Manish Singh took cognisance in the matter and launched a probe. A probe team led by ADM Pawan Jain, CMHO Dr BS Saitya, ZMO Dr Pradeep Goyal, executive engineer (electricity department) DK Jain, executive engineer (power safety) NK Sharma, and fire safety officer of IMC Pradeep Sharma reached the hospital to investigate the incident. The team will submit its final report to the collector.

Smoke engulfed in ICU in a few minutes
“My mother was on a ventilator in the ICU at the time of the incident. Smoke engulfed the ICU and it all turned dark. For once, I had lost hope as it was hard to breathe. Hospital staff shifted my mother to the ICU on the third floor.”
Sangeet Bairagi, the patient’s attendant said.

I ran to inform staff about incident
“I was in the waiting area on the third floor of the hospital. I saw smoke in the ICU on the fourth floor and I ran and informed hospital staff. I was visiting my brother who is admitted to the hospital.”
Rakesh Bathre, family member of a patient said.