None hurt in fire at Safdarjung Hospital

Fire broke out in the main building of Safdarjung Hospital here on Wednesday afternoon, but no injuries were reported. Four fire tenders were called to extinguish the fire.

The building houses operation theatres (OT) on four out of its five floors. The fire broke out at 4:10 pm outside the OT on the first floor near the false ceiling and old furniture. It spread to other floors too. Official sources cited short-circuit as a possible reason.

No one was injured and very few people had to be evacuated due to the timing of the incident. The time for the outpatient departments (OPDs) was over and only a few people had come to the emergency section at that time. Sources said the timing of the incident helped to ward off a major mishap.

“If the fire had broken out before 3 pm, it would have affected a lot of people. Operations are  conducted till that time and a lot of family members are present with the person to be operated upon. The number of staff members and doctors is also high that time,” said a staff member.

He said the problem should be looked into urgently. “There are a number of open (power) sockets in the hospital, which have a huge potential for fire break-outs. Despite repeated requests, no one has ever repaired them,” he said.