A fire broke out on Monday afternoon in the endoscopy room, located near the emergency ward, of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi.
All the patients and staff in the vicinity were evacuated safely after a fire call was received from the emergency ward at 11:54 am.
14 fire tenders were engaged to douse the fire. The fire department said the fire was brought under control after an hour of the incident. No casualties or injuries have been reported so far.
Following the incident, the emergency ward at AIIMS Delhi was closed until further orders. Patients coming to the hospital for emergency care are being asked to go to Safdarjung Hospital. This information is being announced to patients and their families at the hospital’s gate.
According to sources, the second floor orthopaedic operation theatre was functional at the time and patients had to be evacuated from there as well.
They said the fire broke out in the store area of the endoscopy room but the cause is not immediately known.
Police and fire services teams inspected the spot and found that the blaze originated in the store room on the second floor. The room had been closed for a long time, a senior officer said.