BH CORRESPONDENT, Kolkata: Fire broke out at the BC Roy Children’s Hospital in Kolkata on Tuesday afternoon, creating panic among parents of babies inside and hospital staff.
The authorities vacated the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) ward, a section meant for new-borns. Nineteen babies were evacuated and moved to the adjacent ward.
A hospital staff said that at around 12.10 pm, a blaze and smoke could be seen at the intensive care unit. The fire is believed to have originated from one of the machines at the ward.
Hospital principal Sanat Kumar Ghosh said, “The staff at NICU spotted smoke and fire sparks coming out of a c-pap machine inside the ward. Soon , the ward was filled with smoke. We quickly removed 19 children from the NICU to the adjacent ward. The hospital staff brought the fire under control with the help of fire extinguishers.”
Sheikh Baharuddin, father of a child who was undergoing treatment at NICU, said, “We were very scared after we saw the smoke and blaze. We didn’t know what to do. But the doctors along with other hospital staff acted fast and got the situation under control.”