Death toll in SUM Hospital fire rises to 21

Janakibla Hui was shifted to the AIIMS in a critical condition after the devastating fire ravaged the private medical facility.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik visit patients at AIIMS Hospital in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday after they were shifted from the SUM Hospital. Photo: Biswaranjan Rout

The death toll in the SUM Hospital fire rose to 21 on Wednesday after one of the injured persons who was undergoing treatment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here passed away.

Janakibla Hui was shifted to the AIIMS in a critical condition after the devastating fire ravaged the private medical facility on Monday evening, a spokesman of the AIIMS said.

Most of the victims, who were on ventilator support, lost their lives due to asphyxiation as a thick layer of smoke enveloped vast areas of the hospital after the fire broke out.