Patients evacuated in UK hospital blaze

Patients were being evacuated from the Royal Marsden Hospital today after a blaze broke out on the top floor of the building, London Fire Brigade said.

Eight fire engines and 40 firefighters are battling the blaze on the Fulham Road, central London.

The emergency services were called to the hospital at 1.20pm.

A London Fire Brigade spokesman said: “We’re currently evacuating patients. We don’t have numbers at the moment.”

Pablo Pico, who works at Peter Harrington Booksellers in Fulham Road, said: “There is a lot of smoke and we can see a lot of ashes flying over.

“There are ambulances coming down the street still and helicopters overhead.”

A London Fire Brigade spokesman said 15 fire engines and 75 firefighters were battling with the blaze.

He said: “The top floor and the roof is alight and it’s still ongoing. We’re doing our best to bring it under control.”

Iain Heggie, owner of the Crown pub which is next to the Marsden, said dozens of patients were evacuated by emergency services.

He said: “Patients were carried on mattresses from the various hospital exits past my pub.

“Firefighters were helping but it was mainly community support officers and nurses.

“They were covered by blankets and others were walking, I saw a lot going by.”

Some bystanders questioned why they could not see any jets of water being used on the roof, which was still glowing red hot.

A group of doctors in blue scrubs could be seen wheeling medical equipment on a trolley from the Royal Marsden towards the Brompton Hospital.

Dr Toni Burke, who was evacuated, told Sky News: ``It was all very sudden, it was about lunchtime. The fire alarm went off and there was a lot of smoke coming from the front and the left-hand side of the building.

“We think it was where some construction work was going on. It is close to a couple of wards but luckily those wards had been closed for Christmas.

“However, the smoke now is covering the sky above us and I imagine throughout the hospital as well.

“I know they are still evacuating patients – there are still patients within the hospital and in theatre, particularly, there were two operations going on. I’m not sure exactly what has happened to those two.”