Hospital Loses Electricity, Four Die
June 13, 2001
Tropical storm Allison has caused many problems for Americans over the past few days, especially in Texas. Houston's Memorial Herman Hospital experienced a severe power outage last weekend, causing the loss of electricity throughout the hospital.
This created many safety concerns for the hospital, as patients on ventilators required hand ventilation. Approximately 60 patients on ventilators were given hand ventilation, but not all 60 patients survived the ordeal. Four patients lost their lives during the outage, including a 63-year-old male, a 70-year-old male, an 88-year-old male, and a baby.
This recent incident has prompted experts to question the whereabouts of a back up generator for the hospital. Did Memorial Herman Hospital have a back up generator? If so, why did it malfunction? Is it possible that those four patients might still be alive if a properly functioning generator had been employed?
Tropical storm Allison has been documented as one of the worst tropical storms to hit the United States. The storm has already caused over $1 billion in damage.
-- Article Courtesy of InjuryBoard.com
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