Jamshedpur, May 4: In a tragic incident, at least three patients were killed and two others were injured after the third-floor balcony of the medicine ward at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College and Hospital (MGMMCH) in Jharkhand’s Jamshedpur collapsed last night.
East Singhbhum Deputy Commissioner Ananya Mittal said that at least 15 patients were in the medicine ward when the third-floor balcony collapsed. As a result, the ceiling and corridor of the second floor caved in. The accident happened around 3 p.m. on Saturday, soon after a seminar ended in the medicine ward hall.
As per reports, a 30-member team from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) began the rescue operation around 11 p.m. on Saturday night. It took more than 10 hours for the NDRF and fire brigade to recover the bodies.
Hospital superintendent Dr. R.K. Mandhan confirmed that three bodies were recovered from the debris. The deceased persons were identified as David Johnson (76) from Straight Mile Road in Sakchi, Lukas Simon Tirkey (61) from Gadra in Govindpur, and Srichand Tanti (65) from Seraikela.
The medicine ward building, built in 1960, had been in poor condition for a long time, with cracks often appearing in the walls and ceiling, and plaster falling off over the years.
State Health Minister Dr. Irfan Ansari announced Rs 5 lakh in financial help for the families of those who died and Rs 50,000 for each of the injured.
He said, “I visited MGMMCH late last night with the additional chief secretary of the health department to review the situation. The NDRF and district administration are carrying out the rescue work. The Deputy Commissioner has been asked to conduct a high-level investigation and submit a report within a week.”
