Rainwater enters hospital wards, short circuit at JPMC

KARACHI:

Rainwater has entered the wards of government hospitals in Karachi, creating a challenging situation since the previous day.

The Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) experienced a short circuit, leading to power outages in several wards as Rafiq Shaheed Road faced flooding due to intermittent rain.

The affected road houses three major government hospitals under the Sindh Health Department, namely JPMC, National Institute of Cardio Vascular Diseases (NICVD), and National Institute of Child Health (NICH). This has resulted in significant difficulties for patients heading to these medical facilities.

Read: PPP faces backlash amidst Karachi's heavy rain woes

In particular, the emergency department at NICVD has seen the accumulation of rainwater besides transforming the route to JPMC Medical-ICU 4 into a pond.

Subsequently, a fire erupted in the medical ICU of JPMC due to an electrical short circuit post the rainfall. Multiple wards in JPMC have been without electricity since the rains commenced, causing challenges for both patients and medical staff amid the darkness.

The hospital staff promptly extinguished the fire caused by the short circuit, with power being restored through the backup system. Efforts were made to clear the rainwater inside the hospitals.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, February 5^th, 2024.