Mock drill made it easy to save lives
Mock drill conducted three days ago came in handy for the staff at the Columbia Asia Hospital to fight the fire on Friday.
The precise co-ordination between the hospital staff, police and fire service personnel ensured a swift and safe rescue operation. The fire department received the fire alert around 2.50 pm and three fire tenders reached the spot by 3.15 pm with 50 firemen.
More than 50 police officers rushed to the spot soon after the fire alert. Two platoons of KSRP were summoned to control the situation. Within minutes all the 75 inpatients , including those at the Intensive Care Unit, were evacuated and shifted to different hospitals.
Noth East Division Police had issued notices to all hospitals 15 days ago directing fire preparedness, in view of the fire incident at AMRI Hospital in Kolkata. The Columbia Asia Hospital responded affirmatively and conducted a mock drill three days ago. The exercise helped the hospital staff to handle the situation deftly, DCP Ravikanthe Gowda said.
The situation would have gone worse in the absence of a proper co-ordination among the hospital, police and fire force, said another senior police officer.
Cause for the mishap could be electric short circuit due to fluctuation in power supply. Excess heat generated in the components of the UPS in the basement might have triggered internal short circuit, said B K Hampagol Deputy Director (Technical), Fire and Emergency Services.
The hospital had obtained a no objection certificate, but it is not known whether the management had installed fire extinguishers and appointed trained personnel.
Burning of wires emitted carbon monoxide which is highly suffocative, he added. The situation was back to normal by 5 pm. The hospital was immediately shut down. The police have registered an accidental fire report to take up the investigation and will register a case, if the investigation reveals negligence. As of now, there is no FIR, said Ravikanthe Gowda.
