December 24, 2015: JAZAN, Saudi Arabia - The Saudi Ministry of Health (MoH) confirms news of a fire that broke out at Jazan General Hospital in southern Saudi Arabia earlier this morning. The fire occurred on the hospital’s first floor where the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), and maternity ward are located.
All patients in this floor have been safely evacuated except for one critical patient from the ICU who died from smoke inhalation.
The smoke from the fire spread to the higher floors causing 24 deaths and 123 injuries. 57 of those injured have been released from hospitals after receiving treatment and sent home. 58 patients are in stable condition and eight in the intensive care unit.
The Ministry reports that immediately after the fire was detected,the hospital’s management declared a state of emergency and mobilized its evacuation procedure. 20 ambulatory teams were on-site together with 20 other medical teams from the MOH to ensure safe transfer of the patients to other medical facilities.
A team of specialists are in Jazan now to investigate the circumstances of the incident, evaluate the response, and the effectiveness of the emergency procedure in order to counter future incidents. The team will report back to the Ministry with their findings.
The Minister of Health, Khalid Al Falih stated “I am saddened and shocked by the incident and the number of fatalities experienced. I offer my deepest condolences to all the families for their loss. He added that “the Ministry is now focusing on caring for those injured and their families. An investigation is also under way to ensure that everything is being done to avoid any issues like this in the future.”