Patients evacuated following hospital fire

A number of patients were quickly evacuated after a fire broke out in the emergency department at Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust’s Queen’s Medical Centre on the evening of Friday, 2 January.

Queen's Medical Centre (c) Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust

Queen's Medical Centre (c) Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust

In an update at 1.15am on Saturday, 3 January, the trust said the incident had been stood down but the department remained ‘exceptionally busy'.

A spokesperson said: ‘Following a fire in the department on the evening of Friday 2 January, teams acted quickly to move a number of patients out of the department to continue to be cared for safely while the Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue team responded to the fire.   

‘During this time we are grateful to colleagues at East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) for holding ambulance handovers.

‘We are now returning patients to the area, which is fully functional. 

‘We are hugely grateful to our NUH colleagues, and our partners at Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue and EMAS for their swift and professional response to help maintain safety for all of our patients, staff and visitors.'

A Nottinghamshire Fire & Rescue spokesperson said: ‘We were called at 8:28 pm on 2 January 2026 to reports of a fire at Queens Medical Centre, Derby Road, Lenton.

‘Crews from Highfields, London Road, Stockhill, Arnold and Carlton attended the incident.

‘A fire was located in the structural void and was extinguished using one hose reel jet.

‘Once extinguished, crews revisited the site periodically throughout the night to reinspect and ensure no further heat sources were present.'

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