Patient claims he was stuck inside MRI machine as staff forgot to take him out

An elderly man had a narrow escape when a technician allegedly left him unattended inside an MRI machine in a Haryana hospital on Monday, forcing him to break its belt to come out.

The 60-year-old told reporters in Panchkula that he went to the civil hospital in the city to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan.

According to the complainant, the technician said the process could take 10-15 minutes, but forgot to take him out from the machine, a charge the hospital denies.

"I was gasping for breath, but no one was there to take me out," he said. "Finally, after struggling for over half-an-hour, I somehow managed to break the machine belt and came out."