A 26-year-old man was seriously injured after he fell through a shaft from the seventh floor of the surgical specialty block of GH on Saturday.
Elumalai, a contract worker, who was employed to fix a lift at the block in Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, fell while trying to reach for a drilling machine, according to supervisor Murali.
Elumalai, who hails from Tirukazhukundram in Kancheepuram district, according to the two others who were working with him, was perched on an iron rod scaffolding when he slipped and fell. The surgical specialty block is behind the twin towers and iron scaffolding has been erected around the building in anticipation of renovation.
Elumalai, who fell around 4 p.m., was pulled out by two other workers using a rope. He was admitted to the casualty ward of the hospital with serious head injuries.
There are two lifts in the building and work is on to install another lift. Both the lifts could not be accessed on Saturday.
The building has a ramp but it is in disuse, with the passageway converted into a dumping place for damaged cots, garbage bins and chairs. There are no lights either.
Around 6 p.m., when the police tried to visit the scene of the accident, they were prevented from doing so. Some workers were fixing wooden planks and they told the police to seek the permission of the assistant engineer of the hospital’s public works department. The grille door to the ramp had been closed after the accident.
Patients in the upper floors of the building said the lifts had been out of service for three days now. A man using a walker said he had to climb up the stairs to reach the ward. The staircase leading to the sixth floor was also in darkness.
