Twelve patients, including one doctor, died on Saturday afternoon at Delhi’s Batra Hospital after the facility ran out of medical oxygen for the second time in a week at 12.45 p.m.
Six of the twelve were sent to the hospital’s ICU (intensive care unit), while the other two were admitted to the wards. Dr. RK Himathani, the head of the Gastroenterology unit, was named the deceased scientist.
Hospital officials informed the Delhi High Court, which was conducting its 11th consecutive day of hearings into the national capital’s oxygen crisis, that re-supply tankers just arrived at about 1.30 p.m., leaving around 230 critically ill patients without oxygen for around 80 minutes.
“At 12:45 p.m., we were out of oxygen. At 1.30 p.m., the supply arrived. We have been without oxygen for 1 hour and 20 minutes “According to the hospital’s testimony in court.
“We hope no lives were lost,” the court replied, to which the hospital responded, “We have… one doctor, and one of our own.”
Dr. Sudhanshu Bankata, Executive Director of Batra Hospital, released a video SOS earlier today.
“We’ve all run out of oxygen and are currently living on cylinders. That will also expire in the next ten minutes. We’re back in crisis mode. The Delhi government is attempting to assist, but their tanker is believed to be some distance away “He said.
Raghav Chadha, the Minister of Water Resources in Delhi, responded: “Within five minutes, our SOS cryogenic tanker carrying Liquid Medical Oxygen will arrive at Batra Hospital. Their daily oxygen provider has defaulted once again due to suspected ‘lack of oxygen supply,’ and they are being dragged up.”
At 12:01 p.m., the hospital told the court that it had run out of oxygen once again.
“We have been in SOS mode since 6 a.m. this morning… we have 307 patients admitted, 230 of which are on oxygen treatment,” the hospital said.
Batra Hospital has run out of medical oxygen for the second time in a week. The hospital got a last-minute re-supply on April 24, just minutes after its supply had run out.
Batra Hospital is one of many in the national capital dealing with a debilitating oxygen crisis that has placed the lives of thousands of Covid and non-Covid patients in jeopardy.
India has been struck by a crippling outbreak of Covid infections; daily new cases surpassed four lakh this morning, setting a new global peak. Because of the increase in cases, hospitals are overcrowded, physicians are traumatized, and services such as beds, medications, and oxygen are in dangerously short supply.
The quota for oxygen in Delhi has been increased to 490 metric tonnes per day, against an expected demand of 700 MT, but availability is only about 400 MT. The government of Arvind Kejriwal has said that there is a supply shortage and that some tankers are being diverted to other states.
