Madhya Pradesh: 8 dead in major fire at Jabalpur hospital, CM announces compensation

Eight persons were killed after a massive fire broke out at a private hospital in Madhya Pradesh’s Jabalpur district on Monday. The deceased include four patients , three hospital staffers, and one attendant. 

“Four people have died and three are severely injured. It was a massive fire, and our teams rescued all the people trapped inside the hospital. A short circuit could be the reason for the fire,” ANI  quoted Akhilesh Gaur, CSP Jabalpur, as saying.

#WATCH | Madhya Pradesh: Fire breaks out at Jabalpur Hospital. Further details awaited pic.twitter.com/RdjjqARKIY

— ANI MP/CG/Rajasthan (@ANI_MP_CG_RJ) August 1, 2022

Expressing grief on the incident, Chief Minister Shivraj Shingh Chouhan announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the next of the kin of deceased. 

Superintendent of Police (SP) Siddharth Bahuguna said the fire erupted at New Life Multi-speciality Hospital near Damoh Naka under Jabalpur’s Gohalpur police station area in the afternoon.

Fire officials said they received a call at around 2:15 pm after which four fire engines and around 40 officers rushed to the spot. Reports suggest that the fire broke out in a generator adjoining the hospital due to voltage fluctuation.

"The hospital had gotten a fire safety plan approved, but they had not installed a static installation after which they would be given a fire NOC. Regarding this, a notice was also issued to the hospital recently," fire officer Kushagra Thakur was quoted by The Indian Express as saying.