A 35-year-old patient died and two people suffered burn injuries after an oxygen cylinder exploded inside an ambulance outside Udala Sub-Divisional Hospital in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district on Thursday, police said.
The patient, identified as Sujosh Barik, a resident of Kundabai under Udala police station limits, was being shifted to a hospital in Bhubaneswar for treatment of a severe blood infection when the incident occurred.
According to police, the ambulance driver opened the oxygen cylinder’s valve to provide oxygen to Barik. A suspected leak then triggered a fire inside the vehicle, causing the flames to intensify rapidly before the cylinder exploded.
“The patient died inside the ambulance due to the fire caused by the oxygen cylinder blast. Two others also suffered burn injuries while rescuing the patient,” Udala police station inspector-in-charge Banamali Barik said, according to the report.
Family members managed to pull Barik out of the burning ambulance, but he had suffered severe burn injuries and died within minutes, police said. The force of the explosion was strong enough to blow off the ambulance’s roof.
The two injured people sustained burn injuries while attempting to rescue the patient. Firefighters later brought the blaze under control outside the hospital.
The ambulance had been hired from a private operator. The incident places attention on the safety of emergency patient transport, where oxygen cylinders are used in confined vehicle interiors and must be secured, connected and operated during movement or transfers.
Police have registered a case and are investigating the incident. The report did not provide details of the ambulance operator’s safety procedures, the condition of the oxygen cylinder or whether any inspection had been conducted before the vehicle was used.
