(Karachi) At least six patients died due to shortage of oxygen in Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH), Peshawar local media reported on Sunday.

As per details, all the patients breathed their last during an hour due to unavailability of oxygen cylinders at the health facility.

Confirming the incident, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Health Minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra said that he has ordered the authorities to submit an inquiry report on the matter within 48 hours. He added that most of the patients who died were infected with coronavirus.

The health minister said that if the inquiry report is not deemed satisfactory, the provincial government will hold its own in-depth investigation.

Jhagra vowed that all the facts of the case will be made public, requesting people not to peddle unverified information on social media. “Neither this, nor any other incident will be left unused, to improve the health system; it’s service; and it’s system of accountability and transparency,” he said.

However, he stated that the exact number of casualties is yet to be confirmed. "The tragic incident should not haver occurred," he lamented.

Earlier, Provincial Doctors Association said that 1,240 doctors were infected by COVID-19 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.

The PDA highlighted that 398 nurses contracted novel coronavirus while working on the front line. Moreover, 1,132 other provincial health workers were infected by the disease, it stated.

During the pandemic 43 health workers, including four nurses, have been martyred by novel coronavirus infection.