Author Topic: JPMC remains without power 18 hours  (Read 1669 times)

Offline fizza bano

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JPMC remains without power 18 hours
« on: June 07, 2010, 08:21:30 AM »
JPMC remains without power 18 hours
Karachi:The Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), one of the major hospitals in Karachi, was without electricity on Sunday for 18 hours after rains wreaked havoc in the city. Besides, rainwater seeped into the special ward of the health facility, forcing the administration to shift the patients to another floor.

Talking to The News, head of the emergency ward Dr Seemin Jamali told The News on Sunday evening that the hospital was on generators since the wee hours of Saturday.

“We were constantly in touch with the authorities, but electricity was restored only after 18 hours,” said the doctor. The KESC administration was not available for comments despite several attempts. Moreover, the hospital, which Dr Jamali said is below the “cantonment line”, had to bear the burnt of the torrential rains as rainwater seeped into the special units of the hospital, consequently disrupting the work. Patients had to be shifted to another floor on an emergency basis. “We have called on the fire brigade to drain out the water through their suction pipes which is the only way we can get the situation under control.”

Meanwhile, she rubbished the reports that rainwater had clogged other wards of the hospital and insisted that only the special unit had to be evacuated. “There is no need to create panic,” was her stance.

However, Dr Jamali admitted to being clueless regarding the situation inside wards if another spell of heavy rains would hit the city. She said for the time being they would control the situation with the help of suction pipes but “we do not know what course to take if more rains ensued.” She said that the hospital has always followed the standard procedures during emergencies, adding that they needed help from authorities on matters which were not under the control of the hospital administration.

The JPMC, which receives patients from far and wide, has a history of being mired with problems after a rainstorm, as the main entrance of the hospital is usually seen to be blocked with stagnant rainwater in such situations. When asked whether the hospital administration had filed a complaint with the authorities, Director JPMC Dr Tasnim Ahsan said that she will have to go through the papers to give a “proper answer.”

Meanwhile, security in charge of the JPMC Dr Shrichand Talib said that there was no rainwater on the premises of the hospital as he had made sure that the people do not face any difficulty while entering the health facility. However, when asked about the clogged water inside the special unit, he said: “If heavy rains do not ensue during the next 24 hours, the special unit will be cleared from rainwater. But in case another spell of rains hits the city, the same situation will occur again.THE NEWS