Three labourers suffer burns at addiction centre

Police say fire erupted when a labourer lit a cigarette

LAHORE: Three labourers suffered burns when a fire erupted in the newly-constructed Addiction Centre of the Punjab Institute of Mental Health (PIMH) on Tuesday.

Police said workers were busy checking gas installation process and the room was filled with the substance. It exploded with a loud bang as one of the labourers started smoking a cigarette. As a result, three workers suffered burn injuries.

After receiving information of the incident, rescue teams and the fire brigade reached the spot, controlled the blaze and took the injured to the burn unit of the Jinnah Hospital.

The injured were identified as Naveed, 25, Irfan, 22 and Arshad, 45. Doctors said that Naveed and Irfan suffered 20% burns while Arshad sustained 50% burns. PIMH Executive Director Dr Nasir Bhatti said that the fire was immediately brought under control by hospital employees and the injured were sent to emergency ward of the Jinnah Hospital by Rescue 1122. Later, the fire brigade also reached the scene.

Fire incidents in hospitals are common nowadays due to poor safety standards. On the night of December 25, a huge fire broke out in the cold storage of the Services Hospital in Lahore. Some nearby wards were also filled with thick smoke and the incident spread panic at the medical facility. A committee was also formed to investigate the matter.

Incidents of a similar nature had also taken place at the Services Hospital on June 2012 and October 2017. The June had claimed many lives.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 3^rd, 2018.