Tangail hospital fire: Burned ICU yet to be restored after eight days

The Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Tangail General Hospital, damaged after catching fire, has yet to resume functioning eight days into the incident.  

As a result, critical corona patients have been being shifted to other places since the day.

On the other hand, as the ICU is yet to become operational, tension was prevailing among the corona infected patients, their relatives and district residents.

Asked about the matter, Dr Abul Fazal Mohammad Shahabuddin, civil surgeon in Tangail, said that the workers of the Public Works Department have already completed the repairing works of the electrical wiring of the damaged ICU unit.

"Later, a technical team from National Electro Medical Equipment Maintenance, Workshop, and Training Center in Dhaka came to the hospital a day before the Eid and worked on other issues including oxygen supply. It will be possible to reopen the ICU after a team of experts from there comes by tomorrow (Saturday) and gives the green signal after checking everything," he added.    

Dozens of patients were whisked off Tangail General Hospital by their panic-stricken relatives on July 15 after a fire broke out at the hospital's Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

The patients had to take shelter beside a road near the hospital. Some critical Covid patients gasped for air without adequate oxygen support.

One of them died after suffering a cardiac arrest. 

The next day, one of the patients, discharged from the ICU, died and five were sent to other hospitals. On the same day, a five-member committee headed by Additional District Magistrate Sohana Nasrin was formed to probe the fire incident and directed to submit the report within three days. The committee investigated the incident and submitted a report to the Deputy Commissioner (DC) within the period.

DC Dr Ataul Gani said that the investigation report stated as a standard protocol a high flow cannula needs break to function normally but it was used non-stop, got overheated and caught fire. 

To avoid such accidents, the probe committee made a number of recommendations, including engaging skilled and trained manpower to run the ICU. "We have already sent the investigation report and recommendations to the concerned departments, including the Ministry of Health," he added. 

Dr Khandakar Sadequr Rahman, assistant director of Tangail General Hospital, said that as per the recommendation of the investigation committee, he and several other doctors and staffers of the hospital have already been taking the training.

Notably, the prime minister on April last year directed to set up 10-bed ICU at all district hospitals and later the ICU unit was inaugurated at the hospital on May 2 this year.