MP hospital fire: Condition of five injured is stable; four of the 8 deceased were women

The condition of five persons injured in the major fire that claimed eight lives at a private hospital here in Madhya Pradesh is stable, an official said on Tuesday.

According to officials, four deceased were women. Eight people, including four patients, were charred to death and five others injured in the blaze that broke out at New Life Multi-speciality Hospital near Damoh Naka on Monday afternoon.

“The condition of five injured persons is stable, including the two undergoing treatment in the government medical college here,” Jabalpur collector Ilayaraja T told PTI.

A day earlier, the collector had said that of the five injured, two were in critical condition and admitted to the ICU of the government medical college in Jabalpur.

The eight deceased included three staffers of the hospital who are identified as Mahima Jatav (23), Swati Verma (24), and Veer Singh (30). The four patients were identified as Durgesh Singh (42), Tanmay Vishwakarma (19), Sonu Yadav (26), Ansuiya Yadav (55), and a woman, whose identity is not confirmed yet.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had directed the Jabalpur divisional commissioner to inquire into the tragedy.

Officials had said that the blaze was prima facie caused due to an electrical short circuit. Power at the hospital had tripped around 2.30 pm and while the power system was switching to the backup, something went wrong — possibly an electrical short circuit – and that ignited the inferno at the hospital.

Flames started from the ground floor, moved upwards and then engulfed the entire building.