Patient dies as SLA blocks ambulance in Vavuniyaa

[TamilNet, Sunday, 09 November 2008, 22:13 GMT]
One of the five patients sent in Ambulance from Ki'linochchi Tharmapuram hospital to Vavuniyaa hospital in need of urgent treatment died Saturday night as Vanni Sri Lankan Forces Head Quarters (Vanni SF-HQ) refused permission for the ambulance to proceed to Vavuniya general hospital, Tharmapuram hospital sources said. The ambulance had sought SLA permission to proceed to Vavuniyaa along the SLA allowed road, through the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) located in Puthukkudiyiruppu.

The patient who died was T. Gunaratnam, 51, a resident of Chaanthapuram in Ki'linochchi.

The ambulance returned around 4:45 p.m after waiting for nearly four hours, from 12:30 p.m. when  the ICRC had told the ambulance  that the Vanni SF HQ had not granted the necessary permission.

Gunaratnam, who was suffering from a serious ailment died Saturday night in Tharmapuram hospital, Ki'linochchi.

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