Maharashtra Health Minister assures 'thorough probe' into hospital oxygen leak that killed 22
MUMBAI: A through probe will be conducted to find out if negligence led to the leakage of oxygen at a municipal hospital in Nashik which caused the death of 22 COVID-19 patients, Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope said on Wednesday.
The incident took place at Zakir Hussain municipal hospital in the north Maharashtra city earlier in the day.
The deceased included 11 men and 11 women, all of whom were on ventilator, Tope told reporters here.
As per the local officials, the patients died as the oxygen supply was disrupted due to a leakage in the oxygen storage plant.
"It is a very tragic incident. It is a COVID-19 hospital run by the Nashik Municipal Corporation where 157 patients were admitted of which 67 were on ventilator," Tope said.
"It is yet to be ascertained if the leakage from the oxygen tank was caused by negligence or it was the issue of workmanship. The incident will be probed thoroughly," the minister said.
The kin of the deceased will get financial assistance from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund, he added.
The state government will also seek opinions from experts to prevent such incidents in future, he said.