A Life-and-Death Struggle: The Condition of Two Victims from the Gas Station Explosion

Yesterday, two victims in the intensive care unit from the gas station explosion have sustained burns covering 60% of their body surface, including damage to lung tissue. This was reported by Hovhannes Hovhannisyan, the director of the National Center for Burn Surgery and Dermatology of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia, as stated by News.am.

"They have fourth-degree burns. Their condition is extremely critical; a life-and-death struggle is currently underway. The critically injured are in a state of shock, and we are intervening to detach their consciousness to mitigate their pain response, which is quite pronounced. Even dressing changes for such patients are an extremely intensive intervention. We refer to this as surgery, and it might even be performed under general anesthesia," he said.

Regarding the other four victims, Hovhannisyan stated, "The condition of the other four is assessed as moderate and stable. They are in the department receiving dressings and appropriate treatment. They have burns covering 20-25% of their body surface, with approximately second-degree depth. These patients are up on their feet, their consciousness is intact, and they can take care of themselves. Currently, we are conducting certain interventions after which we will allow relatives to approach them."

When asked about where the burns were sustained, he responded, "Everything depends on their position at the moment of the blast. Mainly the shoulder area and limbs. The critically injured have almost completely burned backs and limbs. The crucial change in condition is expected on days 5-7 and 7-10, when poisoning reaches its maximum level. During these days, we anticipate a deterioration in the patient's condition. At this point, we cannot assess what will happen. We always expect a deterioration in the patient’s status. That is, we operate not under the principle that the patient's condition is mild, and we can do a little, but we think that we must do the maximum to prevent any decline."

He also added that among the injured, six are middle-aged men, and one is a woman, who is the wife of one of the critically injured. She has been discharged and is outside now.