NEW DELHI, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- A 60-year-old woman being treated for COVID-19 was killed early Saturday in a fire incident at a state-run hospital in India's eastern state of West Bengal, officials said.
The fire broke out inside a hospital ward for COVID-19 patients at Burdwan Medical College in Purba Bardhaman district, about 110 km north of Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal.
"It was around 5:00 a.m. local time (2330 GMT) today that the fire broke out in the ward. There were four patients in the general ward. Even though we managed to rescue three patients, one succumbed. Only one bed was affected in the fire," Dr. Tapas Ghosh, medical superintendent of the hospital, told media.
The hospital authorities have formed a five-member committee to probe into the incident.
Local media, quoting a senior doctor, reported that the fire may have been triggered by a mosquito repellent coil as only one bed was gutted.
India is currently battling the third wave of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Federal health ministry Saturday morning said 235,532 new cases and 871 related deaths were reported during the past 24 hours. ■
