VIJAYAWADA: Ten patients were killed and 18 others sustained burns in a fire accident at a COVID Care Centre being run in the Swarna Palace Hotel by Ramesh Hospitals on Eluru Road in the heart of Vijayawada city, early Sunday.
One of the victims was charred to death while the remaining nine died of asphyxiation. Three of them were women and seven of them were men.
Expressing shock and grief, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy announced an ex gratia of Rs 50 lakh each to the bereaved families and directed officials to ensure medical care for the injured.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the death of the patients and had a telephonic conversation with the Chief Minister during which he offered all possible support from the Centre. The fire, suspected to have been caused by short-circuit, broke out around 4.45 a.m. when most of the inmates were asleep.
The flames and smoke soon spread to the first and second floors of the five-storeyed building, suffocating the people trapped inside. There were 44 people including 31 patients, inside the centre at the time of the incident.
Some of them broke the glass windows and perched on the balconies screaming for help.
Quick Response Teams, fire tenders, NDRF and police personnel rushed to the spot following a distress call from the housekeeping staff.
With the wooden railings on fire and in the absence of an alternate staircase, firefighters used ladders, broke open the windows and rescued 18 people. The injured were shifted to nearby hospitals.
At least, 15 patients were moved to the Ramesh Hospitals.
Narrating his nightmare, a survivor, Pavan Sai Kishan, said, "Thick smoke engulfed the hotel. I could not go anywhere. I broke the window panes, stood on the slab outside and screamed for help. I called up police and fire services personnel. It was only with their help that I could survive."
Most of the inmates were gripped by panic, more so after it became clear that there was no way out of the building.
Four of them jumped from the first floor where the fire was raging. They sustained serious injuries. All of them were rushed to a hospital where their condition is said to be stable.
Health Minister Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas and Home Minister M Sucharitha held a review meeting with police and district officials.
Later, speaking to the media, he explained that there were 31 COVID patients in the hotel and of them, 18 were rescued.
"The body of one was found charred on the first floor. Nine patients who were on the second floor died of asphyxiation. Apart from the 31 patients, there were seven hospital staff and six hotel staff when the mishap took place," Sucharitha said and added that efforts of fire services and police personnel saved lives.
Ramesh Hospitals, a private establishment, has taken Swarna Palace Hotel on lease from July. It has been using the hotel to house COVID patients with mild symptoms. It had applied for permission to treat COVID patients in May.
Based on the complaint of the local tehsildar, a case has been registered against both the hospital and the hotel under Section 304 (II) (Whoever causes death of any person by doing any rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide) and 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide) read with 34 of the IPC.
The tehsildar, in the complaint, said it appeared that the hotel and hospital managements had knowledge of electrical defects in the building but avoided rectifying the same considering the expense involved.
"Knowing the fact that if the defects are not rectified, there is a possibility of short-circuit, they opened the COVID care centre in the hotel," the complaint alleges.
Acting swiftly, the government constituted two separate committees -- one to study the cause of the mishap and another to probe if the hospital has the requisite permissions.
The panels have been directed to submit their reports in 48 hours.
"The committee to be constituted with CEO, Arogyasri and Director of Health will look into whether the hospital has the permissions. The other committee will probe the cause of the accident," the Health Minister said adding preliminary inquiry pointed to the negligence of the hospital management.
"We will take stern action against whoever is responsible,'' he asserted and appealed to the people to approach government hospitals if they test positive for the virus.
President Ramnath Kovind, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu, TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, BJP State president Somu Veerraju and Jana Sena president Pawan Kalyan were among those who conveyed their condolences to the bereaved families.