A fire that broke out in the intensive care ward of a private hospital has killed Eight coronavirus patients in India’s western city of Ahmedabad.
According to emergency services, the fire was caused by a medical staff member’s personal protective equipment (PPE).
“A staffer whose PPE caught fire ran out of the ward to douse it but the fire spread rapidly to the whole ward,” said Rajesh Bhatt, additional chief fire officer of the Ahmedabad Fire and Emergency Services.
It was later reported that five men and three women, who were undergoing treatment for the novel coronavirus succumbed to burns.
“These 8 patients were not in a position to escape… they died due to smoke and heat caused by the fire,” Rajesh added.
Angry residents accompanied relatives and friends stormed the facility to demand answers into the cause of the fire, but they were met with police officers in the Gujerat capital.
Police have opened investigations into the incident.
