A burst pipe was behind a massive leak of water from the ceiling of the Larnaca general hospital’s ICU the previous day, the state health services organisation (Okypy) said on Friday.

A video of the water gushing out of the false ceiling went viral on Thursday night, with staff using rubbish bins to prevent a flood.

Okypy spokesman Charalambos Charilaou said the water came from a burst pipe, which had been repaired immediately.

Charilaou suggested that some hospital staff had deliberately tried to attribute the leak to the rain.

“Technical malfunctions can happen anywhere, in any building, whether new or old,” he said.

The spokesman said Okypy tried to carry out regular maintenance to pipework in a bid to minimise such incidents.