- Haresh Parshuram Yetal
Major fire broke out in a dialysis unit of the District HQ Hospital in Keonjhar January 31

A major fire had broken out at the district headquarter hospital in Keonjhar, Odisha on the afternoon of January 31, 2022. The patients in the affected unit were immediately shifted to safer places with the help of doctors and other staff of the hospital. No casualty was reported in this mishap. Fire brigade was rushed to the spot and managed to douse off the blaze. Meanwhile, a short circuit is suspected to be the reason behind this fire.

The fire was erupted at round 12 pm inside the CT scan and dialysis unit of the hospital due to a suspected short circuit in the Air Conditioner (AC) at the unit. The unit had 11 patients along with seven doctors and 20 medical staff at the time of the incident. The security personnel and medical staff promptly swung into action and tried to douse off the blaze with help of fire extinguishers. The patients were also shifted successfully to safer place by the hospital staff. However, one patient fell unconscious due to suffocation.
Reports further indicate that the patients started to panic after seeing the smoke and the fire. Some patients reportedly felt drowsy after smoke covered the entire unit. After bring informed, police and fire brigade was rushed to the spot and completely extinguished the fire. A probe has been initiated into this matter.