Agencies / Mumbai
At least six persons were killed and 147 others, mostly patients and staffers, injured in a major fire that engulfed the government-run Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Hospital at Andheri East here Monday evening, officials said.
A majority of those injured, who have been admitted to various hospitals in the suburbs, were patients and staffers. By late on Monday night, around a dozen were treated and discharged.
The 147 people who were rescued have been shifted to Cooper Hospital (Andheri West), P. Thakrey Hospital (Trauma), Jogeshwari (East), Holi Spirit Hospital and Seven Hills Hospital in Andheri (East).
Speaking to reporters, Mayor V Mahadeshwar said, “We are yet to ascertain the cause of the fire. MIDC is responsible for the fire audits, whether they have carried out the audits or not will be investigated.”
According to the Disaster Management cell of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the fire broke out on the fourth floor of the five-storeyed hospital building around 4 pm. Around 147 people were rescued and shifted to Cooper Hospital (Andheri West), P. Thakrey Hospital (Trauma), Jogeshwari (East), Holi Spirit Hospital and Seven Hills Hospital in Andheri (East). Firefighters managed to douse the blaze by 7.30 pm.
“A total of nine patients have been shifted. They were feeling suffocated but are stable now. We are expecting more patients,” Dr Harbans Bava, superintendent at Jogeshwari trauma hospital, said.
I am deeply pained by the casualties dueto fire in ESIC Hospital Mumbai today. In this difficult times, I on behalf of my ministry, extend all possible help to families of those deceased & injured. Team of ESIC doctors has been rushed to ensure necessary medical help immediately. https://t.co/wlKNLELhUv
— Santosh Gangwar (@santoshgangwar) December 17, 2018
#Mumbaifire ESIC KAMGAR HOSPITAL 2 dead and more than 100 injured #KamgarHospital pic.twitter.com/mtWFTY9im7
— Dr Shadaab Shaikh, MD (@DrShadaabShaikh) December 17, 2018