The intensive care unit undergoing treatment caught fire on Saturday COVID-19 Patients in southern Turkey have died, nine people have died after a Turkish oxygen cylinder exploded, the health minister said.
The state-run Anadolu news agency said the fire broke out at the privately run Sanko University Hospital unit in Gaziantep, az3030 miles (505050 km) southeast of Istanbul. The hospital’s statement quoted the victims as being between statement 56 and the 85. The fire was quickly contained.
The statement said 14 patients undergoing intensive care treatment have been transferred to other hospitals. An investigation is underway.
Health Minister Fahretin Koka tweeted that nine people had died in the fire, raising the previous estimate of eight deaths by the hospital and GGZentep governor’s office fees. No immediate explanation was found for the discrepancy.
The governor’s office said 19 patients were in the unit when the “high pressure oxygen device” exploded at 4:45 a.m. (0145GMT) in the morning. No one was injured in the incident except for casualties, he added.
According to government figures, intensive care units in Turkey currently have a business rate of 74% beds, however, medical associations say that figure is higher and their hospitals are overcrowded with COVID-19 patients.
On Friday evening, Turkey’s health ministry reported 26,410 new coronavirus cases, bringing the country’s total to 1.98 million since March. The figures include asymmetric cases, which were not recorded in the four months to the end of November, following criticism that the government was trying to cover up the extent of the country’s outbreak.
The 246 COVID-19 related deaths reported in Turkey on Friday have reached record levels, with a total of 17,610 deaths from the reported coronavirus.
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