Cape Town – A fire broke out at Eugene Marais Hospital in Pretoria on Thursday, originating from a standby generator on the ground floor.
According to reports, the incident occurred just before 6pm, leading to the evacuation of about twenty patients from a ward and the casualty area due to smoke.
At least About 20 patients were evacuated from one of the wards, SABC News said on X.
About 20 patients evacuated from one of the wards at the Eugene Marais Hospital in Pretoria, after a standby generator caught fire. Fire caused part of the ground floor of the hospital which included casualty, to be filled with smoke. #sabcnews
— SAfm news (@SAfmnews) November 23, 2023
Tshwane Emergency Services responded promptly, extinguishing the fire with only the generator sustaining damages.
“The Tshwane Emergency Services Department received the call at approximately 17:50. Emergency Services arrived on the scene to find a generator on fire and immediately started with firefighting operations. The fire was subsequently extinguished and only the generator sustained fire damages.
JUST IN: Fire at Eugene Marais Hospital in Pretoria. pic.twitter.com/LkEroSiKgY
— Yusuf Abramjee (@Abramjee) November 23, 2023
“The hospital staff manage to safely evacuate 20 patients to an alternative ward. According to hospital management, two hundred to two hundred and fifty patients were not affected by the smoke. The hospital staff is conducted a further assessment of the patients to determine if they were affected in any other way,” The Citizen quoted Tshwane Emergency Services (TMS) spokesperson Charles Mabaso as saying.
Hospital staff safely relocated the evacuated patients to an alternative ward.
Approximately 200 to 250 other patients were unaffected by the smoke, the report said.
The cause of the fire, which coincided with a power outage, is under investigation.
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Picture: X/@Abramjee
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
