Firefighters were called to an electrical fire at Southampton General Hospital overnight, triggering the evacuation of patients, the closure of part of the site’s West Wing, and significant disruption on surrounding roads.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service confirmed crews attended the incident at Southampton General Hospital after reports of a fire affecting the Endoscopy Department in the hospital’s West Wing.
The fire is understood to have broken out during the early hours, with hospital staff and emergency responders working swiftly to move patients to safe areas. Several patients were relocated to other wards as a precaution, including vulnerable patients from specialist units.
One patient inside the hospital described the scene as “crazy” as staff worked under pressure to ensure patient safety. Writing on Facebook, she said:
“I’m in hospital — there’s been a fire on West Wing. It’s crazy here at the moment. They had to bring people onto the cancer ward but are making sure we’re safe from any infections. The staff are run off their feet.”
Another hospital visitor said routine care was heavily disrupted, with day surgeries affected by the evacuation.
“My husband was due a day operation but they hadn’t phoned to cancel. He went in and was more or less straight back out as the day ward was full of West Wing patients. I really feel for the staff today.”
Police closed part of Coxford Road during the response, causing traffic delays around the hospital campus. Motorists reported being unable to leave the drop-off area and urged others to avoid the area if possible.
One resident wrote:
“Part of Coxford Road is closed by police. I’ve just dropped someone off and now I’m stuck in the drop-off point as it seems you can’t get out the other end. Avoid.”
Another local added that while the road was clear early in the morning, disruption was expected to worsen later in the day as commuters returned home.
By mid-morning, the fire was confirmed as extinguished, but the West Wing remained closed while assessments continued. The cause of the electrical fire has not yet been formally confirmed, and investigations are expected to take place.
Hospital management has not yet issued a full statement on service disruption, but patients are being advised that some appointments and procedures may be delayed.
Emergency services have praised hospital staff for their rapid response during the incident, which ensured all patients were safely evacuated without reports of serious injury.
This is a developing story.
