Hertfordshire hospital had to tell patients to stay away after oxygen incident

West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust declared a critical incident at Watford General Hospital on Saturday
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West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust declared a critical incident at Watford General Hospital on Saturday and told people not to attend after a technical issue with oxygen equipment.

The hospital said the incident did not pose any risk to patients and the problem was resolved by 10.30pm on Saturday.

Patients were able to attend Watford General Hospital as usual and ambulances were able to bring patients to Watford General instead of to neighbouring hospitals.

In a statement on the West Hertfordshire NHS Trust website, it says: "The issues experienced today have been resolved and a safe level of oxygen was maintained throughout the duration of the incident.

"The trust is grateful to neighbouring hospitals and to the ambulance service and the police for their support today."

Deputy chief executive Helen Brown said: "We know that our NHS colleagues and the police are exceptionally busy at the moment, but this didn’t stop them stepping in to help. They were quick to respond and together – as one team – we kept our site and our patients safe."

The trust is responsible for Watford General as well as Hemel Hempstead and St Albans City hospital.

A critical incident was declared at Watford General Hospital on SaturdayA critical incident was declared at Watford General Hospital on Saturday
A critical incident was declared at Watford General Hospital on Saturday

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