The hospital, where the injured are rushed to after any disaster, is plagued by blocked exits, expired extinguishers and clueless staff
Victims of major disasters are treated at KEM hospital. File Picture
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At a time when the lack of fire safety in Mumbai's restaurants is being questioned in the wake of the Kamala Mills tragedy, mid-day observed that one of the city's biggest hospitals — KEM in Parel — is a fire trap. The hospital, where victims are treated after any major disaster, has blocked exits, dead fire extinguishers and staff that are clueless about what to do should an untoward incident occur.
More than 6,000 people visit KEM everyday, as it is one of the biggest civic hospitals in the city. In such a condition, any fire-related accident can turn into a humongous disaster. One may think the hospital would be ready to handle any such tragedy. But mid-day's reality check revealed just the opposite.
The emergency exits located at the end of the wards lead to nowhere as the patients and the staffers use it to either dry their clothes or as a dump yard for unused stuff
How you gonna call?
To begin with, the hospital lacks facilities to call authorities in case of an emergency. "The hospital is a maze of passages and wards with no clarity. Mobiles don't work inside the complex, so we have to use the phone booths installed there. Sadly, many of the booths are dysfunctional, which would once again becomes an obstruction while calling the fire brigade in case of an emergency," said Alka Deb, a patient's relative.
If help can't be called for, there is little else one can do in the hospital as well. A casual inspection reveals that almost all the fire extinguishers in the new building of the hospital, which was constructed at a cost of Rs 40 crore, have expired in 2016. In fact, few of the extinguishers inside the wards are in the same condition. What's more? They're all covered with spiderwebs and dust, which shows that no one has even bothered to check their condition.
Fire extinguishers inside the hospital have expired in 2016
The exit to nowhere
To add to this already shameful list of problems, the emergency exits located at the end of the wards lead to nowhere, as the patients and the staffers use it to either dry their clothes or as a dump yard for unused stuff, thus blocking the passages. So, there is no way for any unwell patient or his/her relative to be able to rush out in case of an accident.
No signal
Also, a quick check in the wards of the old building clearly shows how negligent the hospital is regarding fire safety. Most of the wards like gynaecology, paediatrics and surgery don't have a single fire extinguisher. The emergency sirens in these buildings don't work on several floors either. They are either broken or dysfunctional. And if blocked exits weren't enough, none of three that run through the staircase in the old building contain an emergency exit signal, which is compulsory in any hospital as per the fire safety and disaster management rules.
As per the requirements, hospitals needs to put photo-luminescent exit signs to help those inside find their way out in the dark as well. Because none exist, patients wouldn't be able to go out in case of a power outage either. Even the security guards at the hospital aren't actually aware of emergency exits.
Lift kara de!
Fire safety aside, regular amenities, like elevators, break down regularly, creating a huge problem for relatives of patients, who either have to wait in serpentine queues to access one or take the stairs. "Once, I had to rush to the eighth floor where my mother is admitted. The doctor had asked me to buy some emergency medicines. When I came back with medicines, there was a huge line for the elevator, so I had to climb all the way up," said Rajesh Brijal, a resident of Lower Parel. Also, the hospital houses several stray cats that are supposedly sterilised. They are often found stealing food of patients or sharing their hospital beds.
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