Lebanon hospitals race to treat surge of injuries caused by pager attack

Sept 18: Hospitals in Lebanon raced to treat a sudden surge of thousands of patients, including Hezbollah members, who were wounded in a coordinated attack targeting hundreds of pagers used by the militant group. 

At least nine people were killed and at least 2,800 wounded in Tuesday’s attack. 

Minister of Public Health Dr Firass Abiad told reporters on Tuesday that about 200 of the wounded were in critical condition requiring surgery or admission to intensive care units, according to state news agency NNA. 

Most of the injuries were to the face, abdomen, hands, and eyes, he said, according to NNA. 

Footage from inside one of the hospitals showed chaotic scenes with staff attending to dozens of men bandaged and bleeding. Patients lay on the floor as people carried in more of the wounded. 

Many of the wounded appeared to have sustained injuries to their limbs and faces. 

Abiad visited several hospitals in the capital, Beirut, on Tuesday evening and then again on Wednesday morning, NNA reported. 

During the visit on Tuesday, he said the Healthy Ministry had started directing the wounded to hospitals outside the capital and its southern suburbs, according to NNA. 

The American University of Beirut Medical Center said it had received more than 190 patients and was operating at full capacity. 

“For patients' safety, transfers cannot be accommodated until further notice,” AUBMC said. 

Pagers used in hospitals: The medical centre also rebutted what it called “rumours and conspiracy theories” and circulated widely online that the facility had changed its paging system before the attack. 

“At a crucial time when AUBMC physicians, nurses, and staff have been fully mobilized to deal with the aftermath of today’s injuries, several malicious social media outlets have started spreading rumours and conspiracy theories about the types of communications systems AUB has in place, attempting to link AUB to this tragic event. The university categorically denies these baseless allegations,” their statement said.