Fire at Barzulla GMC hospital: Principal asked to submit report in 24 hours [details]

The principal of the Government Medical College Srinagar has been asked to ascertain the reasons for the devastating fire that broke out at Kashmir's only bone and joint hospital on Friday evening.

The main building of Bone and Joint hospital at Barzulla was destroyed in a devastating fire on Friday evening that forced the authorities to shift all the patients to other nearby hospitals for treatment.

"Principal of the GMC Srinagar has been asked to identify reasons for the fire within 24 hours", Divisional Commissioner Kashmir P K Pole told media persons after visiting the spot. "Principal will submit report tomorrow after ascertaining causes of the fire", he said.

The Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, however, appreciated locals for evacuating patients without wasting any time. "Shifting patients of bone and the joint hospital was impossible without the help of the locals who swung into action within no time and helped the authorities", he said.

Fire safety audit of Kashmir hospitals sought

Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) on Saturday has sought a fire safety audit of all the hospitals in the valley. "The fire safety audit of hospitals should be done immediately to ensure safety and security of patients and staff," said DAK President Dr. Nisar ul Hassan, in a statement.

"Friday's fire incident at the orthopedic hospital is a wake-up call," he said, adding, "It is imperative to conduct safety audits of hospitals to prevent such incidents in future".

"If we are admitting patients, we need to keep them safe," he said adding "patient safety should be of paramount consideration." The DAK President said we need to ensure that fire fighting measures are in place at health institutions to provide a safe environment for patients.

"We need to identify gaps if any, and fill them on priority," he added. "Every hospital needs to have trained dedicated staff to maintain the fire safety standards," he said.

OPD, emergency services to resume soon at the fire-ravaged hospital

The Out Patient Department (OPD) and Emergency Services at fire-ravaged Bone and Joint Hospital will resume from the unaffected building of the complex soon.

"Fire broke out in the emergency operation theater, no loss of life. The hospital will be fully operational within a week or more" Additional Chief Secretary, Health & Medical Education, Vivek Bhardwaj said.

Cause of fire being ascertained

"The cause of the fire that caused the extensive damage to the Bone and Joint Hospital on Friday evening is being ascertained", said Dr. Samia Rashid Principal Government Medical College Srinagar in a statement.

She also denied that the fire was caused due to the LPG cylinder blasts at Bone and Joint Hospital at Barzulla Srinagar.

"The investigations in the cause of the fire is being ascertained while restoring the immediate patient care especially of shifted patients to various hospitals and resumption of OPD and Emergency Services at the unaffected building of Bone and Joint Hospital Barzulla is the top priority this time", she said.

As reported earlier, a massive fire on Friday evening destroyed Kashmir's only orthopedic hospital and prompted authorities to evacuate 113 patients to other hospitals while many others left on their own.

Officials said the massive fire broke out in the 250-bed Bone and Joint Hospital, Barzulla in Srinagar at around 21:30 hours. The fire started from the emergency theatre on the third floor of the old building of the hospital and it spread to inpatient wards very quickly.