Five COVID-19 patients died in the early hours of Monday in a private hospital in Haryana’s Hisar district with the hospital authorities attributing the deaths to the shortage of liquid oxygen. The administration denied the allegations and ordered a magisterial probe into the matter.
The five men aged between 40 and 60 were in a critical condition. Soni Burn Hospital’s owner Rajat Soni told The Hindu over phone that an ambulance from his hospital went to fetch liquid oxygen from the plant in the city. There was a long queue and the patients died before he could get the oxygen. “A hospital staff went to fetch liquid oxygen around 11 p.m. on Sunday but could not get the supply till 4 a.m. on Monday. I also arranged a couple of cylinders from other hospitals, but it was not enough.”
He said the situation was similar on Monday and the hospital authorities had already received a message that the supply would be 15% less and they were told to admit patients accordingly.
The family members of the deceased also held a demonstration outside the hospital alleging that the deaths were caused due to lack of oxygen and negligence. “We received a message around 5 a.m. saying five patients had died in the hospital. The cause is a matter of investigation, but the family members of the deceased blamed the deaths on lack of oxygen supply and negligence,” said Rajbir Singh, DSP, Hisar-1.
Deputy Commissioner Priyanka Soni denied the allegations saying the city had surplus liquid oxygen on Sunday. “We have ordered a magisterial probe into the matter. The matter has also been referred to the Medical Negligence Board. The hospital concerned did not inform us about any alleged short supply of oxygen,” said Ms. Soni.
Earlier, eight people had died in two hospitals in Gurugram and Rewari amid allegations of shortage of oxygen supply. Both district administrations have set up committees to probe the incidents.
Published - April 26, 2021 03:22 pm IST
