Chennai: A fire broke out at Chettinad Hospital and Research Institute in Kelambakkam early morning today. Timely action by the hospital staff prevented loss of life.
The fire started on the second floor above the ICU unit of the two-storeyed hospital building at around 4.30 am.
Sources said the hospital staff jumped into action immediately. They alerted the fire department and evacuated all the patients (25) from the building.
It is said that the fire started at the pharmacy block and the hospital staff managed to safely retrieve the expensive pharma products from the block.
Meanwhile, fire tenders from Siruseri, Tambaram and Thirukazhukundram stations arrived to the spot. After a struggle of one-hour, they doused the flames. However, the fire had gutted the hospital by then, damaging medical equipment and the glass facade surrounding the hospital building. An electrical short circuit is suspected to be the cause of the fire. Further investigation is on.