Ventilator damaged in fire at CSR Block in KGH in Visakhapatnam, no casualties

Ventilator damaged by fire in KGH IRCU due to electrical short-circuit, no casualties reported, patients safely relocated.

A ventilator was damaged following a fire and smoke, reportedly due to an electrical short-circuit at the Intensive Respiratory Care Unit (IRCU) on the 4th floor of the CSR Block in the King George Hospital, here, past midnight on Monday. Luckily, there are no casualties.

KGH Superintendent Sivanandam rushed to the hospital and oversaw the relief operations. The patients were shifted to other wards in the CSR Block. A three-member committee, appointed by the Superintendent, stated in its report that the fire was caused by an electrical short-circuit.

“There were only eight patients in the IRCU at that time. The ventilator, which caught fire was not attached to any bed. It caught fire due to a short-circuit. The technicians came and repaired the damaged circuits. No other equipment or other ventilators in the ward were damaged in the accident,” Dr. I. Vani, In-Charge Superintendent of KGH, told The Hindu on Tuesday evening.