Health of 5 injured miners still critical: Koca

ANKARA

The health condition of five miners injured in a mine explosion in Bartın is still critical, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has announced.

Six patients were airlifted to a hospital in Istanbul’s Başakşehir district and admitted to the burn care unit, Koca stated.

“The conditions of our five patients are still in a critical phase, and they are breathing with a breathing apparatus,” the minister said.

Pointing out that the burn rate of patients ranges from 65 to 80 percent, he noted that the heart of one of the patients transferred to the hospital stopped but, thankfully, was later revived.

One of the victims who suffered from carbon monoxide poisoning is being given oxygen therapy and will hopefully get better in three to four days, Koca said.

Expressing that the first four days are critical for the patients, Koca stated all medical teams in the intensive care unit are following the process with precision.

“President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been closely following each patient and their recovery process,” he noted.

“We need to see their situation in the next three or four days. I hope our patients will be discharged from the hospital as soon as possible,” Koca added.