Death toll in Brazil hospital fire rises to 10
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — The death toll in a hospital fire that forced the evacuation of patients in Rio de Janeiro has risen to at least 10, Brazilian firefighters said Friday.
Four firefighters were hospitalized after battling the overnight blaze at Badim Hospital and about 90 patients were transferred to at least seven other hospitals, according to the fire department.
Television images showed medical workers tending to patients sitting in wheelchairs with IV poles beside them in the street, some on sheets and mattresses. Elderly and intensive care patients were among those rescued.
Staffers in surgical masks wheeled medical equipment in the road as smoke billowed from the building after fire broke out Thursday night.
Marcelo Crivella, the mayor of Rio de Janeiro, visited the hospital on Friday morning and declared an official mourning period of three days.
Authorities are investigating the cause of the fire. A social worker and other Badim Hospital staff are assisting relatives of patients, the hospital said Friday.