8 dead in Jaipur ICU fire; Rajasthan govt orders high-level probe

Jaipur: Eight patients, including three women, were killed after a massive fire broke out late Sunday night in the Neuro ICU of the Trauma Centre at Sawai Mansingh (SMS) Hospital in Jaipur.

The blaze reportedly began around 11.20 pm in the storeroom of the ICU, where paper files, medical equipment, and blood sample tubes were kept. A short circuit is suspected to have triggered the fire, according to the Trauma Centre’s nodal officer.

At the time, 11 patients were in the Neuro ICU and 13 others in an adjacent ward. The fire spread rapidly, filling the entire floor with smoke and making rescue operations difficult. Fire personnel broke window panes from the outer wall to spray water inside, taking more than an hour to control the flames.

Patients were evacuated along with their beds and shifted to the street outside. Family members alleged that early warnings of smoke were ignored by the hospital staff.

“Smoke started billowing nearly 20 minutes before the fire. I alerted the staff, but no one responded. By 11.20 pm, the plastic tubes had started melting, and the ward boys fled,” said Sheru, a resident of Bharatpur, who rescued his relative on his own.

Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, who termed the incident “tragic,” rushed to the hospital at 2.30 am to review the situation. He met doctors and senior officials, directed immediate relief measures, and postponed his official engagements in Delhi to stay in Jaipur.

A six-member high-level committee headed by Iqbal Khan, Commissioner of the Medical Department, has been constituted to investigate the cause and handling of the fire. Other members include Additional Director (Hospital Administration) Mukesh Kumar Meena, Chief Engineers Chandan Singh Meena (RajMES) and Ajay Mathur (PWD Electrical), Additional Principal of SMS Medical College R K Jain, and Jaipur Municipal Corporation Chief Fire Officer.

The Chief Minister assured full support to the affected families and emphasised that accountability and safety protocols in medical institutions would be strictly reviewed.

Leader of the Opposition Tika Ram Jully expressed shock over the tragedy, calling it “heartbreaking” and stating that the horrific incident had “shaken everyone.”
(With IANS inputs)