'Coverup' investigation after city hospital patient 'set on fire' during surgery

The chief of surgery at New York City's Lincoln Hospital "set a patient on fire" during an operation, causing severe burns on the man's neck and chest, The Post has learned. Dr. Jay Yelon was performing a tracheotomy on April 19 when his electronic scalpel, which gives off tiny sparks, came close to the patient’s oxygen supply, igniting a "minor explosion," hospital insiders say. Before the fire was extinguished, unconscious Enrique Ruiz suffered second-degree burns on his neck and chest. Sources at the South Bronx hospital charge a whitewash, saying Yelon failed to mention the patient's burns in a post-surgery report; he claimed the flames were extinguished with "no danger to the patient."