Panic struck again on Monday at Kerala’s Kozhikode Medical College Hospital as smoke was detected on the sixth floor of the emergency block .

The incident occurred two days after a fire broke out in the UPS unit due to an explosion involving 34 batteries. The recurrence of the smoke incident at the hospital intensified concerns about the safety measures in place

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This time, the smoke originated from the sixth floor of the hospital’s casualty wing, located in the super-specialty building. Fresh smoke was reported on Monday even as inspections by the Fire Force and Electrical Inspectorate were ongoing following a similar smoke incident that took place on Friday night . Smoke was seen rising from the sixth floor at around 2.15 pm on Monday.A bed in a ward caught fire and was burnt down.

The incident prompted an immediate evacuation of patients and staff from the area. Two fire force units have arrived at the scene .According to hospital authorities, the smoke is suspected to have been caused by a short circuit.

Many questions are being raised over the incident. The authorities have not yet been able to provide a clear explanation for the fresh smoke incident. There are allegations that the new incident reveals defects in the construction of the new block and defects in the wiring. Kozhikode MP , MK Raghavan said that there is a suspicion that there is a defect in the construction of the building and that a detailed complaint will be filed to investigate the matter.

Last Friday, smoke was detected in the emergency department of the Medical college hospital, leading to allegations that five patients had died due to smoke inhalation. The preliminary post-mortem report released recently clarified that three of the five patients died of natural causes unrelated to the smoke

Meanwhile, the state government has formed a five-member expert team, led by the Superintendent, Government Medical College Hospital, Kottayam, to inquire into the inconvenience suffered by patients while smoke engulfed the PMSSY block of the Government Medical College Hospital, Kozhikode, on the night of May 2, after a minor explosion in its UPS room.