Newborns safe after minor fire at Mandeville Hospital’s Neonatal Unit
MANDEVILLE, Jamaica — The Southern Regional Health Authority (SRHA) says that all patients in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Mandeville Regional Hospital (MRH) in Manchester are safe following a minor fire at the facility on Friday morning.
According to a release, staff members were alerted to smoke coming from a ward housing the NICU at about 3:45 am. Chief Executive Officer for the MRH, Alwyn Miller, explained in the statement that further investigations revealed the fire was caused by an Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) device. The fire department was subsequently summoned, and the blaze was extinguished.
Staff members reportedly managed to immediately remove the 11 neonates (newborns) and relocate them to an appropriate area of the pediatric ward.
Following an assessment, all newborns and staff members were confirmed to be safe. It has been determined that usage of the area will resume before the end of the day.