PGH FIRE | Firefighters prepare to leave after responding to a fire that broke out around 3 p.m. on Wednesday at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) in Manila. The fire that started at the medicine ward forced an evacuation of patients to the parking lot, before being declared out some 30 minutes later. There were no deaths or injuries reported. (Photo by GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE / Philippine Daily Inquirer)
MANILA, Philippines — No one was reported hurt or killed after a fire broke out on Wednesday afternoon at the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH) on Taft Avenue in Manila, one of the country’s largest government medical facilities.
Hospital personnel, however, had to evacuate patients after the blaze destroyed the medicine ward. The fire started around 3 p.m., according to the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).
Firefighters rushed to the scene, with 13 fire trucks eventually working together to combat the flames. An ambulance was also sent to the site.
The blaze reached the second alarm at 3:11 p.m. and was placed under control at 3:45 p.m. By 4:30 p.m., the BFP reported that it had been put out.
The Department of Health (DOH) later released a statement, saying its Health Emergency Management Bureau was ready to assist in the transfer of patients to its hospitals.
READ: PGH fire out — BFP
READ: DOH: NCR hospitals to accommodate patients displaced by PGH fire
Assistant Secretary Albert Domingo, DOH deputy spokesperson, said the UP-PGH administration had reported that the fire was under control, although patients and doctors remain in the evacuation area set up in parking lots.
DOH on standby
“All DOH hospitals in the National Capital Region have been alerted and are prepared to accommodate patients,” Domingo said.
As of 6 p.m., however, he reported that UP-PGH had advised the DOH that it would be able to manage its patients in the unaffected wards or rooms.
“DOH remains on standby should the situation require transfers,” Domingo said.
“In light of Fire Prevention Month, the DOH is instructing all its hospitals to review their fire evacuation plans and conduct risk analyses for fire prevention [within] their premises,” he added.
The UP-PGH serves as the primary teaching hospital for the UP College of Medicine at UP Manila. It handles thousands of patients daily.
The cause of the blaze remains under investigation. Fire officials could not immediately estimate the cost of damage to the decades-old public hospital complex.