PGI fire: Operation theatre complex closed for this week

CHANDIGARH: The operation theatre complex of the PGI where a spark had caused a minor fire and patients had to be shifted to prevent any mishap on Wednesday night, have been closed for this week for fumigation. No injury or casualty has been reported. The fire incident occurred at 10pm on Wednesday.
There are seven operation theatres in the Nehru Emergency on the third floor of the building. The spark started in one of these operation theatres where mainly gynaecology surgeries are conducted. “OT number 3 is a reserve kind of a theatre where caesarean cases come only which can't be adjusted in labour room operation theatre. This was the room where the spark started,” said an OT technician.

Sources confirm that OT number 3’s anaesthesia machines, table and other instruments and monitors have become dysfunctional after the incident.

“It was a minor fire which was concerning as it was in a patient-sensitive area of the Emergency. The patients who were shifted last night to other wards have been restored back,” said Amitabh Avasthi, deputy director administration, PGI.

On Thursday, two committees were constituted to investigate the cause and assess the loss caused due to the fire.
The former panel shall be chaired by Dr Arvind Rajwanshi, dean research and the latter by Dr GD Puri, sub dean research. The emergency OT has one table and most of the cases which are done are from the gynaecology department. These surgeries will be done in the trauma OT which has an extra table.

Another committee has been constituted under Dr GD Puri to assess and evaluate the loss of money due to the minor fire in the emergency OT.

Though, no official statement from the hospital has confirmed the cause of the fire, sources say that there was short circuit. "When a paramedical staff was disposing off the needles in the cutter, then the spark started from the cutter. It's not known if that caused the fire,” said an employee of the hospital who was present at the time of the incident.

As the fire was minor the PGI managed to douse off the fire within few minutes but windows had to be broken to put off the smoke that aroused.

“There are many chemicals inside the OT and there is risk as even a minor spark can cause fire. The machines and equipments in the theatre are outlived,” said a technician.