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GETTY IMAGES – The explosion at the Sanko University Hospital caused a fire, which authorities said was quickly extinguished<\/p><\/div>\n
BBC<\/p>\n
Nine people have been killed after an oxygen ventilator exploded at a hospital treating coronavirus patients in southern Turkey, officials say.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The blast caused a fire in the intensive care unit of the private Sanko University Hospital in Gaziantep, the local governor’s office said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n At least one of the patients died while being transferred to another hospital.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Turkey has recorded nearly two million coronavirus cases<\/a>\u00a0and 17,610 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n No injuries were reported in relation to the fire, which occurred in the early hours of Saturday morning and was quickly put out.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The victims were aged between 56 and 85, the hospital said in a statement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n An investigation is under way to determine the cause of the explosion.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Several other patients being treated at the same ward were transferred to receive treatment at nearby hospitals, the Gaziantep governor’s office said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n “Authorities have taken the necessary measures,” the statement said, while offering condolences to the families of the victims.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin tweeted to wish “urgent healing to the wounded”, adding: “Get well soon, Gaziantep.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Last month, a fire at a hospital in Romania killed 10 patients receiving treatment for Covid-19. Reports suggested that\u00a0a medical appliance caught fire<\/a>, igniting a nearby oxygen cylinder.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n In October, more than 150 patients at a makeshift coronavirus hospital in the Russian region of Chelyabinsk had to be evacuated when an explosion in an “oxygen booth” caused a fire, Russia’s emergencies ministry said.<\/p>\n\n