Local News in Brief : Oxygen Blamed for Cedar-Sinai Death
- Share via
The flash fire that killed a 19-day-old boy undergoing surgery at Cedar-Sinai Medical Center was caused by escaping oxygen that was ignited by a spark from a cauterizing device, according to an investigation by the Los Angeles Fire Department, which ruled the fire an accident.
Department spokesman Ed Reed said that the infant was breathing a 90% oxygen mixture but that the source of leak is still unknown. The premature infant, called Baby de Jesus, died Oct. 6 during heart surgery.
Both the small spark emitted by the cauterizer and the circumstances under which the operation took place were completely normal, hospital spokesman Ron Wise said.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
