Jaipur: Fire Breaks Out at NIMS Hospital, Patients Evacuated Amid Smoke; Spend Night in the Open

Jaipur: A fire broke out late on Friday night at around 11 pm at NIMS Hospital and Medical College, located on the Jaipur-Delhi National Highway near Chandwaji town, triggering panic among patients and their families.

The fire started in the false ceiling of the operation theatre on the ground floor, filling the OT and MICU areas with smoke. As smoke spread through the hospital, patients and their attendants panicked. Family members began moving patients out of the wards and ICU themselves. Hospital management also stepped in to handle security arrangements and started evacuating patients. Police reached the spot after being informed and joined the relief and rescue operation. The suspected cause of the fire, at first glance, is a short circuit.

Families moved patients out before hospital could act

Once the fire and smoke put patients' lives at risk, family members moved them to safety in the open even before hospital management could begin rescue efforts. Police then arrived and took charge of the rescue work, helping evacuate patients. Hospital management is reported to have run from place to place during the incident, but the absence of proper disaster management measures meant relief did not reach patients in time. Seriously ill patients had to spend the night outside in the open until late at night.

Police and hospital staff take charge

As soon as news of the fire came in, Chandwaji police station in-charge Rajveer Singh reached the spot with a police contingent. Police personnel went inside the hospital to help move patients out. The station in-charge and his personnel tied cloths over their faces and entered the smoke-filled areas, bringing patients out safely. With the help of hospital management and police, patients were shifted outside the emergency ward. Evacuating patients in time is reported to have averted a bigger loss of life. The actual damage caused by the fire, and its real cause, will only be known after an investigation.

Fire safety arrangements questioned

The incident raised questions over the hospital's emergency safety arrangements. Fire safety equipment reportedly proved inadequate, and Chandwaji police station personnel had to take charge of handling the situation. Station in-charge Rajveer Singh and his personnel tied cloths on their faces and went inside to bring patients out. The incident has exposed the state of the hospital's disaster preparedness.