Odisha: Patient killed in ambulance oxygen cylinder explosion

A patient died and two others were seriously injured after an oxygen cylinder exploded inside a private ambulance at Udala sub-divisional hospital in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district on Thursday night.

The deceased, identified as 46-year-old Sujog Barik, had been admitted to the hospital earlier that morning for fever and breathing difficulties. As his condition worsened, his family hired a private ambulance to transfer him to Bhubaneswar for advanced treatment. According to hospital security in-charge SK Mirza, the explosion occurred around 8:45 PM when the cylinder was turned on.

The blast was intense enough to blow off the ambulance roof, causing metal parts to collapse on those nearby. While bystanders attempted to rescue the patient from the burning vehicle, he succumbed to severe burn injuries. The two attendants also sustained serious burns. Fire services and police responded to the scene to extinguish the flames and initiate an investigation into the cause of the explosion.