Orthopaedics Centre closed after fire
Hamad Medical Corporation’s (HMC) Bones and Joints Centre, also known as Orthopaedics Centre, in Old Salata in Doha has been closed down until further notice after a fire erupted in its parking lot yesterday morning.
Several staff suffered minor injuries and were rushed to the emergency unit of Hamad General Hospital (HGH), an HMC press statement said. The HMC’s Outpatient Department’s Annex for bones and joints was earlier known as the health centre for school students.
HMC said it was a small fire and was quickly contained by firefighters, but according to Al Sharq, it was a major blaze and it was not the first time such a fire had erupted there.
The building that houses the centre is old and most of the time one can see repair and maintenance work going on. There are plans to shift the centre to new premises, said the daily.
Al Sharq, quoting some employees, said due to neglect, fires were not uncommon at the premises.
It said as soon as fire broke out the alarm bell rang. A security guard tried to use a fire extinguisher by breaking a window pane and sustained injuries.
There were a lot of people at the centre when the fire broke out. They were evacuated but some employees suffered minor injuries, HMC’s press statement said, adding “we will inform the public as soon as normal operations of the centre can be resumed”.
The cause of the fire is being investigated, it said. Some cars parked near the site were also damaged by the fire.
