On Tuesday, October 22, a piece of the ceiling in a corridor of Clinic 89 of the Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS) in Guadalajara collapsed. Fortunately, no injuries were reported as a result of this incident. The collapse occurred in the operating room area of the unit located at the intersection of Circunvalación Agustín Yáñez and Chapultepec Sur, in the Moderna neighborhood.
In light of this situation, the spokesperson for the delegation activated the Civil Protection protocol, evacuating personnel and cordoning off the area to ensure safety. In collaboration with municipal Civil Protection services, the causes of the collapse are being investigated to initiate immediate repairs to the affected area. According to a statement from the IMSS, the ceilings will be removed and a structural evaluation will be conducted to determine the causes of the incident.
The Director of Risk Management of Guadalajara Firefighters, Darani López Souza, reported that the fallen ceiling fragment measured three meters long by 1.80 meters wide. Currently, remodeling work is underway within the clinic to repair the damage caused by the collapse.
López Souza ruled out any structural risk in the building and emphasized that at the time of the incident there were no patients in the affected area, as it was not in use. Therefore, she recommended that the IMSS officials conduct a structural analysis of the building to rule out potential additional issues due to the age of the building.
It is imperative that the inspection of the hospital structure be carried out by an entity contracted by the IMSS, as it is a federal matter that falls outside municipal jurisdiction. The Guadalajara firefighters, municipal medical services, and the Red Cross remained in front of the hospital for more than two hours, but unfortunately were not allowed access to the affected area.
