Fires burning, fires burning

In the wise words of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, DON'T PANIC. As per the standard among the residents at the Gazi University hospital, we were taking a prolonged break mid-morning today and wondering a) why the power went out all of a sudden, and b) why there were lots of sirens outside the hospital (we were on the 8th floor with the door closed). Then, the fellow's cell rings: there's a fire in the building and we have to evacuate ASAP! It was mass chaos: 15 floors' worth of patients and hospital staff crammed into the few staircases in the dark. They took 'every man for himself' to a whole new extreme, with most patients having to make their own way out of the labyrinthine building. Fortunately the fellow was very concerned for my safety (more so in fact than for that of the patients') and ensured that I got out safely. As far as I know so far an electrical fire started on the 15th floor (Neonatology) forcing a chaotic evacuation of the whole building. There was no organized plan for how to handle a fire and with the power out, no announcement systems or the like to help direct the patients. Although it looked crazy, I don't think anyone was hurt. I was a little shaky, needless to say; I got particularly upset when I thought of you all and realized how worried you would be if you knew what was going on. There were cameras all over the place so I'm sure it will get lots of coverage (though likely only on Turkish TV). Maybe all that good karma I'd accummulated in London for my first aid duties is running low?? At any rate, I've escaped the whole affair unscathed and only a little shaken. Although the Halifax Infirmary's perpetual testing of the fire announcement system drove me near-crazy in the past, I've never been so relieved to know it exists!

Fire trucks parked outside a panicked Gazi Hastanesi

For more evidence, click here and here and here and here! Craziness!