Five COVID-19 patients die at Roorkee hospital due to disruption in oxygen supply, probe ordered

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Dehradun/Haridwar: Five COVID-19 patients, including a woman, died at a private hospital in Roorkee in Uttarakhand's Haridwar district allegedly due to disruption in oxygen supply to the facility for around 30 minutes.

The incident occurred in the early hours on Wednesday when oxygen supply to the hospital remained disrupted between 1.30 and 2 am, a doctor at the hospital said.

One of the patients who died was on ventilator support while four others were on oxygen beds, he said. A magisterial probe has been ordered into the incident, Haridwar District Magistrate C Ravishankar said on Wednesday.

A medical audit of the hospital is also being conducted by a team comprising the Chief Medical Superintendent of Roorkee's joint government hospital and two doctors, he said.

The team will give a detailed report in a week on the availability of oxygen at the hospital, demand and supply ratio and the number of patients there, Ravishankar said.

He said stern legal action will be taken against those responsible for the incident.