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India: 13 Covid patients die in hospital fire in Maharashtra

Palghar - The fire broke out in the ICU of the hospital.

At least thirteen Covid-19 patients died after a fire broke out in the intensive care unit of a hospital in Virar, an extended Mumbai suburb, early on Friday.

According to the police, the fire broke out at the Vijay Vallabh hospital, which is treating Covid patients. Sources cited a short-circuit in the air-conditioning unit as the cause of the fire.

Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray ordered a probe into the fire. On Wednesday, more than two-dozen patients at another hospital in Nashik, all under treatment for Covid, died after an oxygen tank malfunctioned, causing a massive leak in the complex.

About 60 patients of the nearly 160 in the hospital were in a critical condition needing oxygen.

With the massive rush at most hospitals in major Indian cities, there are fears of an escalation of such disasters. Many of these facilities are not geared to handle a large number of patients, with constant demand for oxygen, critical care needs and medicines.