A six-year-old girl has been crushed to death in an elevator accident at a hospital in the Mexican coastal resort of Playa del Carmen.
The girl had been hospitalized at the medical facility suffering from dengue fever—a viral infection that spreads from mosquitoes to people, El País México reported.
Hospital staff were moving the six year old on a gurney on Monday evening when the accident occurred.
Preliminary reports indicate that the elevator started to ascend with the doors open even though the gurney that the girl was being transported on was not fully inside.
"Around 10:30 p.m., when being transferred, the elevator malfunctioned," said Dr. Enrique Leobardo Ureña, an IMSS delegate for the state of Quintana Roo, where Playa Del Carmen is located.
He said the girl received medical attention but the injuries she had suffered proved fatal.
In a statement posted to Twitter, Director General of the IMSS, Zoé Robledo, commented on the "unfortunate events" that occurred at the hospital.
"Once again, we express our sincere and sensitive condolences to the relatives of the minor; incidents like these should not and shall never happen again," Robledo said.
She said the IMMS had begun an "in-depth" investigation and that it would continue to collaborate with the relevant authorities.
"We will be completely transparent with the results of the investigations. The family has and will have our complete support during this process," she said.
Newsweek has contacted the IMSS for comment via email.
Prior to the accident on Monday, a problem with the elevator had been reported and a technician from the subcontracted company responsible for maintaining the system had come to repair it.
"An hour later, the technician left without leaving signs and barriers that prevented the use of the elevator and without signs of any restriction on its use," Ureña said, noting that the elevator in question had been installed in 2016.
The State Prosecutor's Office has opened an investigation into the incident and the hospital orderly who was accompanying the girl at the time of the incident has been arrested.
The parents of the girl have filed a complaint with Mexico's Federal Public Ministry.
Is there a health issue that's worrying you? Do you have a question about health? Let us know via health@newsweek.com. We can ask experts for advice, and your story could be featured on Newsweek.
