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Oxygen supplies in the country: Health authorities dispel fears  

01 Aug 2021

  • Claim only 20-30% of total production used 
  • Jumbo cylinders distributed islandwide 
BY Maheesha Mudugamuwa Sri Lanka is still consuming only around 20-30% of the total oxygen (O2) production meant to meet all medical necessities of the country at present, despite claims being made of an increase in the total oxygen demand due to Covid-19, according to the Health Ministry.  Assuring that the country has enough oxygen stocks at present, Health Ministry Communications Director and Public Health Services Deputy Director General Dr. Hemantha Herath said that if the demand for oxygen has risen due to an increase in the number of Covid-19 patients, the oxygen supply used for industrial purposes would be diverted, while incinerators would also be used to gather oxygen from the environment.  “Initially, there was an issue, as we did not have sufficient facilities to distribute the oxygen supply. Now, we have rectified that issue. We have already distributed jumbo oxygen cylinders to almost all the hospitals and we are also expecting a few other stocks of jumbo cylinders as well,” he told The Sunday Morning.  Explaining further, Dr. Herath noted that the Ministry had already imported general cylinders as well, so the distribution and storage issues have now been rectified.  “We have enough storage facilities as well as the manufacturing capacity. We have purchased and also received donations of oxygen concentrators,” he added.  Dr. Herath explained, however, that even though the country has enough oxygen stocks at present, in the event it experiences an unprecedented number of Covid-19 cases, there would be a shortage. “There is a limit to everything. Everything depends on the behaviour of the public,” he emphasised. 


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