Kozhikode: Kerala Health Minister Veena George has said that a short circuit or internal issues with the UPS battery are suspected to have caused the fire in the new building of Kozhikode Medical College Hospital. Addressing the media here on Saturday, she stated that technical experts from the Electrical Inspectorate will conduct a detailed examination to determine the exact cause. Currently, forensic experts are investigating the site.

Regarding the suspected five deaths linked to the fire, the minister announced that a team of doctors from other medical colleges will thoroughly examine the causes. The team will review the case sheets of each patient who died on Friday.

“Among the five patients, one from West Bengal was brought dead. Another woman was in critical condition after consuming poison. I was informed that a male patient suffered a cardiac arrest around 7 pm on Friday. Autopsy will be conducted on all five bodies to confirm the exact cause of death,” the minister said after a high-level meeting.

She added that police have registered two cases related to the incident—one for unnatural death and another related to the fire. The Medical College authorities will hand over hospital registers and CCTV footage to aid the investigation.

“A comprehensive probe is underway involving both technical teams and police. The UPS batteries are under warranty until 2026. All equipment in the new block undergoes maintenance by company technicians every six months. The biomedical engineer and doctors in charge recently reported no issues with the machines or batteries,” she stated.

According to the minister, 151 patients were in the hospital at the time of the fire. Of these, 114 remain at MCH, while 37 were shifted to other hospitals, including the Government General Hospital.

“Currently, 12 patients are admitted to the General Hospital. The rest are at Baby Memorial Hospital, Star Care Hospital, MIMS Hospital, and Iqraa Hospital,” she added.

Addressing concerns over the cost of treatment in private hospitals, the minister said discussions would be held with those institutions. She also announced that the affected block would be operational within three days, following inspections by the Corporation, PWD, and the Electrical Department.

The minister said that to manage emergencies, a new casualty unit will be opened at Beach Hospital, and additional doctors and staff will be deployed.

A fire erupted from the UPS room of the PMSSY block of the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital, triggering panic on Friday night. Patients were swiftly evacuated from the building, and three units of Fire Force rushed to the spot to douse the fire. Amid this, the hospital confirmed the deaths of five patients under treatment at the block.