Hat Yai Hospital faces oxygen crisis as Health Ministry orders urgent patient transfers
Hat Yai Hospital has oxygen only until tomorrow, prompting urgent air transfers of critical patients as MOPH and military rush to support flood-hit facilities.
The Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) convened an urgent remote meeting on Tuesday to assess the worsening impact of floods, storms and landslides across southern provinces. Dr Somrerk Jungsaman, Permanent Secretary of the MOPH, said the ministry’s most severely affected facility is Hat Yai Hospital, which reported that its oxygen supply will last only until tomorrow (November 26), making it necessary to relocate around 90 critical patients to nearby major hospitals.
Initially, 50 patients will be transferred by air:
- 20 to Songklanagarind Hospital
- 10 to Songkhla Hospital
- 10 to Phatthalung Hospital
- 10 to Pattani Hospital
To reinforce medical capacity, Health Region 11 will deploy 20 internists, 20 paediatricians and 40-50 nurses. On Tuesday morning, the first support team—four doctors and ten nurses from Maharaj Nakhon Si Thammarat Hospital—was dispatched, along with additional specialists from the Department of Medical Services. By the afternoon, 20 technical staff from Health Support Regions 4 and 5 will arrive to stabilise essential systems.
Air evacuation efforts involve helicopters from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the armed forces, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM), and Pattani Hospital's medical transport helicopter, which can land on the rooftop of Hat Yai Hospital. Emergency medical teams (EMT) and certified aeromedical staff have also been mobilised to assist.
The ministry has additionally coordinated the transport of oxygen cylinders to Hat Yai Hospital to ensure 24 hours of continued supply.
Meanwhile, the Royal Thai Army has ordered the 2nd Army Area Disaster Relief Centre to deploy one disaster-relief company to support the 4th Army Area in assisting flood-affected residents in the South.
Troops and equipment prepared for full-scale operations:
- Transport trucks and evacuation teams
- Flat-bottom boats
- Water pumps
- Rescue gear and special operations units
Urgent tasks for the army:
- Evacuating residents from high-risk areas
- Operating in deep-flood and critical zones
- Supporting transport and early-stage recovery
- Coordinating rapidly and seamlessly with the 4th Army Area’s disaster command centre
