K150m worth of property destroyed in Balaka hospital fire

About K150 million worth of property is estimated to have been destroyed in the fire that gutted Balaka district hospital on Friday morning. 

Fire gutted the 200 bed-capacity hospital, completely destroying the kitchen, laundry, stores and data and records units. 

The fire accident also resulted in power disruption leading to the death of one critically ill patient who was on oxygen.

This was disclosed on Friday when the  Department of Disaster Management Affairs (Dodma) made a donation of essential relief items to the hospital. 

Dodma director of response and recovery Reverend Moses Chimphepo said their aim was to have the hospital reopen as soon as possible.

Among the donated items include flour, beans, salt, pails, cups and plates. 

“We are hopeful that normal services will resume as soon as possible,” Chimphepo said.

Balaka North Member of Parliament Tony Ngalande highlighted the need for government to equip all district councils with fire fighting equipment.

Speaking earlier, when the Ministry of Health officials visited the hospital to assess the damage, director of health and social services for Balaka Eugene Katenga-Kaunda said the hospital will reopen to all services except admissions on Monday.

“We are working to restore electricity so that other services apart from admissions should be restarted. Sadly we lost some equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE) to thieves posing as well-wishers during the rescue efforts,” Kaunda said.