Covid positive pregnant woman, 5-year-old wait 12 hours for ambulance

After a five-month-old pregnant woman and her five-year-old daughter tested positive for Covid- 19 on Thursday, they had to wait for over 12 hours for an ambulance

After a five-month-old pregnant woman and her five-year-old daughter tested positive for Covid- 19 on Thursday, they had to wait for over 12 hours for an ambulance to take them to hospital. The woman’s husband, an autorickshaw driver, had tested positive earlier and is in hospital. His family, living at Panchpakhadi, was home quarantined.

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The man’s brother said, “We called for an ambulance around 10.30am. The ambulance operators kept delaying, saying that they have many calls lined up.”

The woman and her daughter were made to sit in a room. Till 10.30pm, there was no ambulance. The brother said, “At 9.30pm, they informed us that there was a bed in Vedant Hospital, however ambulance was still unavailable. We then called the local corporator who arranged for an ambulance. When we reached the hospital, there was no empty bed and the admission procedure went on beyond midnight.”

Narayan Pawar, the local corporator, has drafted a letter to the chief minister, seeking action against the Covid cell and the officials.

Pawar said, “If TMC does not have enough ambulances, they should hire private ambulances for residents. I have asked the CM to intervene and take notice of the mismanagement of the Covid cell in the city.”

Sandeep Malvi, deputy municipal commissioner of TMC, said he would ensure such incidents are not repeated. “I have heard about the incident which is unfortunate. An inquiry will be conducted as to why the ambulance did not reach the patient for so long. We will take disciplinary action against errant officials.”