‘Could only see panic-stricken faces, black smoke all over’: Patients recount ordeal after fire breaks out at PGI’s Nehru Hospital
It was a routine scenario at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) Chandigarh’s Nehru hospital till 12.20 am on Tuesday when sudden calls for help, cries and prayers started gripping the hospital. Within minutes, an emergency alarm broke out when a fire from an electricity spark started engulfing the building’s ground floor
It was a routine scenario at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) Chandigarh’s Nehru hospital till 12.20 am on Tuesday when sudden calls for help, cries and prayers started gripping the hospital. Within minutes, an emergency alarm broke out when a fire from an electricity spark started engulfing the building’s ground floor, ultimately leading to major fire and smoke across the building’s five floors.
For the patients already in pain, including those on ventilators, pregnant women and newborn babies, it was an ordeal, but with the right instincts and swift action of healthcare staff and firemen, all lives were saved.
“I woke up to a fire alarm and could only see panicked faces and black smoke all over the labour room of the obstetrics and gynaecology department located on the building’s third floor. The first thing I checked was my newborn girl and prayed for her safety. Soon, a few men started breaking the glass windows of the room and started evacuating pregnant women and newborns from the room,” said Deepti, a woman from Mohali’s Sohana area, who gave birth to a baby girl at 10 am on Monday.
Deepti and her daughter, who were among the total 424 patients rescued from the fire, recalled that two men had to lift her along with the newborn to shift them to a safer place through a hydraulic crane. “After surgery, I was not in the condition to walk but the heroes saved me and my daughter and ensured our safety,” she said.
In total, 351 adults, 34 patients from intensive care units (ICUs), 80 pregnant women, 56 newborn babies and 56 children were rescued and shifted to two different areas of Nehru Hospital and Nehru Hospital Extension Block.
In a more horrifying memory, another patient Arti, along with her sister Kajal, were stuck in the ICU at the hospital for a few minutes.
“My sister Arti had a tumor in the stomach, and she was operated upon on Monday. She has been admitted to the PGIMER for a month now and a few days ago, we heard of another fire incident. When nurses came in the room and said a fire had broken, we assumed it was a minor one, but when we peeped out of the window, we thought we wouldn’t be able to make it to a safe place,” said Kajal, adding that God heard our prayers.
“Nurses helped with the emergency medicines and equipment and a few people broke the windows to rescue us. Arti was rushed to the ICU in the Nehru Hospital Extension Block where doctors immediately evaluated her vitals,” Kajal added.
Though major flames were restricted to the building’s third floor, the fourth and fifth floor were filled with only smoke. On the fifth floor, around six patients were admitted in the ICU and were on ventilator support and for the healthcare staff, their rescue was a challenge.
“During the rescue operation, I recalled that four patients on ventilator, and one on high-oxygen demand were admitted to the fifth floor. I immediately called a hydraulic crane and went inside the room. We carried ambu bags, oxygen cylinders and other lifesaving equipment with us. The patients were connected with the portable life-saving equipment and were lifted in the bedsheets along with their ventilators. Through the broken windows, all the six patients were lifted in the crane one by one and shifted to NHE ICUs,” said Dr Rajiv Chauhan, an associate professor from PGI’s anaesthesia department, who along with a junior resident Dr Vishal went inside the ICU to rescue the patients on ventilators. Doctors, nurses and hospital staff risked their lives to save all the patients.