Eight Covid patients, who were on ventilators, died at Chiplun in Ratnagiri district of Konkan region in Maharashtra, after flood water gushed into the hospital, resulting in the malfunctioning of ventilators. Two other patients, also on ventilator, died at another Covid care centre in the city due to the lack of oxygen.
Massive torrential rains for the last two days have resulted in a surge in the water levels of Vashisti river in the city. According to reports, eight Covid patients were on ventilators. As water gushed into the hospital the ventilators stopped functioning because of power cuts. Local witnesses informed the media that the government and hospital administration took action only after the water levels receded. By then eight patients had lost their lives, while others were shifted to the government hospital.
The death toll of Covid patients is likely to go up, according to the district administration.
While the number of Covid patients in Kolhapur and Sangli districts continues to rise, the district administrations are finding it toughto shift Covid-affected patients to safer places.
Flood in Kolhapur, Sangli
Kolhapur and Sangli have a fatality rate of 2.9 per cent and 2.8 per cent, respectively. The recovery rate is in these districts is lowest in the State; Sangli has a recovery rate of 91.2 per cent, while in Kolhapur it is 91.8 per cent. According to government data, Kolhapur has 10,049 active Covid-19 patients, while Sangli has 10, 674 patients.
With the water levels of Panchganga river gushing into Kolhapur city and rural areas, Covid patients, including those on ventilators, had to be shifted from hospitals that were flooded. In Sangli, water from Krishna river has entered mid-city areas.
District administrations are facing a double task of rescuing flood-affected people and also identifying Covid patients who are undergoing home and institutional quarantine. The Central team, which visited these regions last week, had expressed concerns over the low recovery and high fatality rates.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, while speaking to reporters, said that floods have hit the region in western Maharashtra where the Covid situation is serious. He said that Covid patients must not be neglected during rescue operations and that their treatment must continue.