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Team set up to probe fire at Navy hospital
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A patient enters a hyperbaric chamber at the Mintohardjo Navy hospital in Jakarta on May 31, 2006. One of the chambers exploded on Monday, killing four people.
(kompas/Lasti Kurnia)
A
joint team comprising officers from the Navy and the Jakarta Police and members of the Indonesian Hyperbaric Medical Association will be set up to investigate an explosion at a Navy hospital in Jakarta that caused a huge fire, killing four people, on Monday.
The Navy's initial findings show that the explosion of the hyperbaric oxygen therapy cylinder at the Mintohardjo hospital was caused by an electrical short circuit. The joint team is now tasked with looking carefully into the cause of the incident.
"We are now looking for suitable persons that know the facts relating to this incident. We will publicize the results of our investigation [when it is complete]," Navy spokesperson Comr. M. Zainuddin told thejakartapost.com on Tuesday.
The hospital, he said, had complied with standard operating procedure when carrying out hyperbaric oxygen therapy, such as by taking metal materials off the patients before they entered, materials like belts, mobile phones, rings and watches.
Zainuddin explained that the French-made chamber at the center of the incident was classified as a small chamber, able to accommodate four patients at once. "It was first operated in 2013. We always thoroughly maintain the condition of such equipment," he said.
Besides the burned chamber, the hospital also has a bigger French-made chamber that can accommodate 12 patients and a Spanish-made chamber that can be used by 18 to 22 patients.
"We have many patients who use hyperbaric oxygen therapy because this therapy is good for your fitness," Zainuddin said.
This is the first accident since the program started in 2013, Zainuddin added.
Zainuddin shared that Insp. Gen. Abubakar Nataprawira, one of the victims and a former National Police spokesperson, had undergone the therapy several times.
The hyperbaric chamber was opened to the public in 2013. Initially, the therapy was only available to Navy personnel who had suffered from decompression sickness as a result of dive training. The chamber, which fills with 100 percent oxygen, returns the divers' conditions to normal.
During Monday's therapy, a fire broke out in the cylinder, leading to an explosion. Zainuddin said that the fire spread very fast because of the presence of pure oxygen.
The three other victims were Dimas, a doctor at the hospital, Edi Suwandi and Sulistyo. The latter was chairman of the Indonesian Teachers Union (PGRI) and a member of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) of Central Java. (bbn)
