At least 11 COVID-19 patients died on Monday evening in a hospital in the southeastern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh due to oxygen shortages, local media reported Tuesday.
Sadly, this was just one of the many tragedies the South Asian country has witnessed in recent weeks following an oxygen supply breakdown amid the second wave of the pandemic nationwide.
While families and friends of the dead grieved for their beloved ones, they also raged against governments and hospital administrations over oxygen shortages amid a pandemic-induced chaotic mess, prompting them to take immediate actions to turn the tables.
On Wednesday, India’s COVID-19 tally rose to 22,992,517 and the total death toll reached 249,992.Since the second wave, a number of incidents have unfolded across Indian hospitals in wake of the shortage of essential medical supplies, especially oxygen.
On April 23, at least 26 COVID-19 patients died at a hospital in New Delhi when the oxygen supply in its intensive care units ran out completely.
Seven days later, six more died at night due to oxygen shortages in a hospital in Gurugram, a city southwest of New Delhi.
“We came to the hospital thinking doctors are there to take care of our loved ones. But then we are told oxygen is not available,” said Amritha, an attendant.
“Whose responsibility is it to provide the oxygen and who should we blame for the deaths that are taking place simply because hospitals are not having facilities?”
