Fire at hospital nursery in Pakistan's capital kills 14 newborns
AI generated summary, newsroom reviewed
A fire broke out early Wednesday at a newborn nursery in a major government hospital in Pakistan's capital, killing 14 infants, hospital officials and the government said.
Rescue officials said the fire started around 6:45am, apparently after the compressor of an air-conditioning unit exploded inside the nursery on the third floor of the state-run Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS).
In a statement, the Islamabad administration said the fire broke out on the Mother and Child Hospital’s ward.
It said rescue teams rushed to the scene, with six fire brigade vehicles and four ambulances taking part in the rescue operation.
“The fire was immediately brought under control and the children were immediately shifted to the intensive care unit,” it said, adding that 14 children “were completely burnt”.
An inquiry committee headed by the additional deputy commissioner general has been formed to investigate the incident, it added.
Meanwhile, PIMS Spokesperson Dr Aneeza Jalil told Dawn that 15 babies were in the ward.
“At least one baby was saved by a doctor,” she said.
Other media reports, however, put the number of babies at 16, with some suggesting the death toll to be higher at 15.
Speaking to Geo News, Health Minister Mustafa Kamal said the infants in the ward were either in incubators or on oxygen.
The incident is among the deadliest hospital fires in recent years in the country, where government healthcare is subsidised but facilities are under-resourced and overburdened while watchdogs have frequently criticised state-run facilities as mismanaged.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed authorities to conduct an immediate investigation, his office said.
"Those responsible should be identified, and the strictest action should be taken," Sharif's office said in a statement, adding, "A tragedy involving children is an irreparable loss."
The ward has been cordoned off and ambulances were seen outside the hospital building, according to a Reuters witness.
PIMS, where former Prime Minister Imran Khan was briefly treated last week, is one of the main public hospitals of the city.
Pakistani prime minister suspends top health official
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif suspended Federal Secretary of Health Aslam Ghauri, a top official in the health department, and removed him from his post, Pakistan's information ministry said.
The federal secretary of health is a non-political role that reports to the minister who leads the department.
The ministry said the PM expressed "deeo anger" at some officials during a high-level meeting on the fire.
Meanwhile, two former federal ministers, Fawad Chaudhry and Shireen Mazari, sought the resignation of Pakistani Health Minister Mustafa Kamal over the hospital fire.
Victim's father criticises safety measures; probe committee formed
Speaking to Reuters, a father of a victim criticised the safety measures in place at the hospital, adding, "I wasn’t even able to see my daughter, but the condition of the ward is bad.
"I’ve been going there for eight days, the situation was absurd."
He said the building had no fire security, no proper exits.
He also said all doors were close. "Only one door was for us to visit our children. They kept the other doors locked because they feared we would come to see our children too often."
PIMS Rana Imran Sikander, however, told the BBC the door was not locked, but manned instead.
He said this was to protect babies from being stolen from the ward, something that has happened before at government hospitals.
Meanwhile, Islamabad's District Magistrate has formed a fact-finding committee to investigate the fire and produce a report "within 24 hours".