In a shocking incident, eight people died on early Thursday morning at a private hospital for coronavirus patients in Gujarat's Ahmedabad after a massive fire broke out. The unfortunate incident had taken place at the Shrey Hospital in Ahmedabad's Navrangpura area at around 3AM when a blaze engulfed the medical facility, with eight fire engines and 10 ambulances of the fire department rushing to the spot. The eight dead in the ICU ward were five men and three women. 

An official said in a statement that the 50-bed hospital had around 45 patients admitted at the time of the accident. The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Institute of Medical Sciences and Research is now providing treatment to the rest of them after they were rescued. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to his Twitter page to express his condolences over the deaths tweeting, "Saddened by the tragic hospital fire in Ahmedabad. Condolences to the bereaved families. May the injured recover soon. Spoke to CM  @vijayrupanibjp Ji and Mayor @ibijalpatel Ji regarding the situation. Administration is providing all possible assistance to the affected (sic),".

Early morning visuals showed fire officials in their rescue efforts with family members of the COVID-19 patients making attempts to gather more information. The hospital has now been sealed and an inquiry has since been ordered by the Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani. A statement issued by Mr Rupani's office read, "Sangeeta Singh, Additional Chief Secretary (Home Department), will be leading the probe. The Chief Minister has ordered for a report within three days,".

The Prime Minister's Office also tweeted, "Ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh each from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of those who have lost their lives due to the hospital fire in Ahmedabad. Rs. 50,000 each would be given to those injured due to the hospital fire,". 

According to reports, a short circuit is believed to be the reason for the fire breaking out in the hospital. The bodies of the eight patients have been taken for postmortem. Gujarat has recorded over 65,000 coronavirus cases so far and is among the 10 worst-affected states in India by the COVID-19 outbreak, with around 48,000 patients making a recovery to date.