Ex-gratia of ₹50 lakh has been announced to the families of victims of the Vijayawada fire accident. 10 were killed and several were injured in a fire at a hotel in Vijayawada on Sunday. Notably, this had been used as a COVID facility by a private hospital. The reason is suspected to be short-circuiting.
Health Minister, Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas said, “This is a very unfortunate incident. The Chief Minister has ordered to take appropriate measures, he has ordered the ministers to visit the spot.”
“There were 43 people in the hotel, of whom 30 were COVID patients. 10 of them have lost their lives while remaining 20 have been shifted. They are safe and stable. We will review the situation at the collector’s office. Later we will give more details,” Srinivas added.
Ramesh Hospitals in Vijayawada had leased out the Swarna Palace Hotel on Eluru road to serve as a COVID-19 care facility. Around 50 patients had been admitted here, and as many as 30 patients and 15 medical and hotel staff had been present in the hotel at the time of the fire. Since the patients were already infected by coronavirus, the thick smoke that arose due to the fire further aggravated their conditions, leading to death.
Prime Minister Modi expressed his condolences over this incident and spoke with the state’s CM Jagan Mohan Reddy to do the needful.