Rajnandgaon, Dec 2 (PTI) A leakage in an oxygen cylinder forced the evacuation of patients from the Intensive Care Unit of a government hospital in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district following which one patient died on Wednesday, officials said.

Health officials said the death was not caused by lack of oxygen.

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There were seven patients in the ICU of Rajnandgaon Medical College Hospital when in the incident took place, said Dr Ajay Kosam, the in-charge Superintendent.

When an oxygen cylinder in the ICU was being replaced around 1.30 am, its flow meter broke, resulting in leakage of the gas, he said.

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The staff shifted all seven patients to another ward and fire extinguishers were sprayed to prevent fire, Dr Kosam said.

One of the patients, who was in serious condition, died later, he said, while ruling out any oxygen-related complications as the cause.

Another health official said the patient, Mohan Singh (65), a native of neighbouring Balod district, apparently died due to discharge of fluids from the abdomen into the lungs, and not due to anything related to the gas leak.

Commissioner of the state's Health Department C R Prasanna said a detailedreport was awaited.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)