40 major Mumbai hospitals at risk, says fire dept

Forty of the 67 major hospitals in Mumbai are not equipped to fight a fire, an audit conducted by the city fire brigade has revealed. Major hospitals are those with a minimum capacity of 100 beds.

Forty of the 67 major hospitals in Mumbai are not equipped to fight a fire, an audit conducted by the city fire brigade has revealed. Major hospitals are those with a minimum capacity of 100 beds.

HT Image

The audit was planned after the December 9 inferno in Kolkata's AMRI hospital in which over 90 people died.

Of the 40 hospitals that were found deficient, 30 are private hospitals, six are civic-run, and four are run by the state.

All 40 have been served notices. The deficiencies include corridor- and refuge-areas being clogged, LPG cylinders being used in the canteen and laboratory, fire-fighting equipment not being maintained, basements being clogged, and fire extinguishers not in working condition.

“We have given all the hospitals a fixed time period to rectify the shortcomings. Inspec-tions will be conducted after the deadline ends,” said Hasan Mujawar, chief fire officer.

The list of non-compliant hospitals includes Bombay Hospital, Asian Heart Institute, Kokilaben Hospital, Lilavati Hospital and Seven Hills Hospital, among others. A spokesperson of Seven Hills Hospital told HT: “We are 100% fire-compliant and have everything in place in line with the fire department’s recommendations.”