14 newborn babies killed in fire at PIMS hospital in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: At least 14 newborn babies were killed when a fire broke out in the neonatal ward of the Mother and Child Hospital at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) Hospital early on Wednesday morning, while one baby was rescued, according to hospital documents and officials.

The fire broke out at around 6:54am on the third floor of the Mother and Child Hospital, where 15 newborns were present, hospital authorities said. Rescue teams rushed to the scene and brought the blaze under control, but 14 infants died in the incident.

According to the Islamabad administration, six fire brigade vehicles and four ambulances participated in the rescue operation. The administration said the fire was brought under control and the affected children were shifted to the intensive care unit, but 14 infants had suffered fatal burns.

Pims spokesperson Dr Aneeza Jalil said that 15 babies were present in the ward and that at least one infant was saved by a doctor.

Health Minister Mustafa Kamal, speaking to HUM News, said the infants were either in incubators or receiving oxygen at the time of the incident. He said the fire appeared to have started after what he described as a blast in an air conditioner inside the ward.

He said that all hospital team and doctors tend to the emergency. He said that the hospital administration is in contact with parents.

According to the minister, the blast triggered the fire, while the presence of oxygen tanks intensified the blaze. Law enforcement agencies were also present at the hospital following the incident.

Initial report points to oxygen-fed blaze in NICU

The preliminary report prepared by the PIMS administration has shed light on how a fire in the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) claimed the lives of 14 newborns.

According to the report, a nebuliser used to indicate the amount of oxygen alongside an incubator exploded in the NICU, causing the oxygen to catch fire.

The report said that the fire initially remained limited but spread rapidly after the oxygen caught fire.

The blaze generated dense smoke, which entered the newborns’ respiratory systems through the oxygen pipes, according to the preliminary findings.

The report attributed the deaths to the interruption of oxygen supply and burn injuries suffered by the infants.

The findings suggest that the combination of the oxygen-fed fire and smoke entering the babies’ airways severely affected the newborns, who were receiving critical care in the NICU. The PIMS administration is expected to submit the findings as part of the ongoing investigations into the circumstances surrounding the tragedy.

Talal says initial report on PIMS fire sent to PM

Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said on Wednesday that the initial report on the PIMS hospital fire that killed 14 newborns has been sent to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Talking to the media after visiting the PIMS hospital, he described the incident as deeply distressing.

Chaudhry said that the fire occurred between 6am and 7am and that a rescue operation was launched immediately after the emergency was reported.

He said the rescue operation had been completed and that all 14 deceased infants had been identified through medical procedures before their bodies were handed over to their parents.

According to the minister, 19 people were rescued from the affected area, including seven newborns, two men and 10 women.

Chaudhry said that rescue teams reached PIMS within six minutes of receiving the alert at the control room, adding that there had been no administrative lapse in the rescue operation.

He said Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi continued to monitor the situation throughout the operation.

Chaudhry said that the prime minister had constituted an inquiry committee to investigate the incident, adding that CCTV footage and other evidence had been secured.

The committee will examine the hospital’s fire-safety arrangements and identify any shortcomings, he said.

It will also look into whether emergency exits were closed and whether doctors and other staff were present when the fire broke out.

Chaudhry said that three glass windows of the nursery were broken during the rescue operation to facilitate the evacuation of people trapped inside.

He urged people to avoid making allegations before the inquiry was completed, saying the authorities should be given time to establish which gate or route, if any, was closed during the incident.

He said the process of determining responsibility and taking action would begin after the inquiry was completed.

Health secretary removed

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has suspended Federal Health Secretary Aslam Ghori and removed him from office following the tragedy, according to an official notification.

The notification said Housing Secretary retired Captain Muhammad Mahmood had been given additional charge of the health secretary’s post.

PIMS forms separate inquiry committee

The PIMS administration has also constituted a five-member committee to investigate the incident.

Professor Umar Farooq will head the committee, which has been tasked with reviewing available evidence and presenting its recommendations.

The committee will prepare its report within 48 hours, according to the PIMS administration.

PIMS executive director says doctor saved newborn during fire

In a latest development, PIMS Executive Director Rana Imran Sikandar said that a doctor had managed to save one newborn during the fire that killed 14 infants at the hospital’s nursery.

Speaking to the media, Rana Imran said the hospital’s fire-safety system was in satisfactory condition and that 24 oxygen cylinders were present during the rescue operation.

He said the rescue operation faced no obstruction and was carried out without any major hindrance.

The PIMS executive director said access to the affected area had been restricted because of previous incidents involving the theft of babies from the hospital.

He assured that anyone found responsible for negligence in connection with the fire would face strict punishment.

 CDA report says fire brigade reached PIMS nursery six minutes after alert

A fire was reported at the nursery of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) at 6:54am on Wednesday, according to an initial report by the Capital Development Authority (CDA).

The report said fire brigade personnel reached the hospital six minutes after receiving the alert.

Fourteen newborns died in the fire, while seven newborn babies were rescued, according to the preliminary report on the incident.

The report also said rescue teams evacuated 10 women and two men from the affected area.

The findings form part of the initial assessment of the fire, as authorities continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the tragedy.

Identities of deceased infants

Hospital documents released following the incident identified the deceased newborns and their parents.

Among the deceased were twin babies listed in hospital records as “Twin One” and “Twin Two,” born to Asia Bibi and her husband, Bahadur.

List of Victims

Hospital officials posted identification records across the facility to help parents identify their children. The record shared is below.

Twin 1 & Twin 2 (Mother: Asia Bibi / Father: Bahadur)

Newborn (Mother: Javeria / Father: Samiullah)

Newborn (Mother: Alia / Father: Rashid)

Newborn (Mother: Aneesa / Father: Abdullah)

Newborn (Mother: Shakeela / Father: Mohammad Tanveer)

Newborn (Mother: Sidra / Father: Imran)

Newborn (Mother: Sumbul / Father: Usman)

Newborn (Mother: Kiran Fatima / Father: Mohammad Saad-ur-Rehman)

Newborn (Mother: Amina / Father: Khurram)

Newborn (Mother: Maria / Father: Qayyum)

Newborn (Mother: Khizra / Father: Mudassar)

Newborn (Mother: Hafsa / Father: Ishtiaq)

Newborn (Mother: Aroosa Saeed / Father: Idrees Khan)

The infant who was rescued was identified as the child of Asifa, whose father was identified as Waqas.

Hospital sources said the bodies of five of the deceased infants had been handed over to their relatives.

Parents question hospital response

The tragedy prompted anger and questions from the bereaved families, who alleged that hospital staff were not present in the incubation centre when the fire broke out.

“Give me my child,” Javeria, who lost her newborn, said outside the hospital, where ambulances had gathered. “I want justice.”

Some parents claimed they were simply informed that their babies had died and said they had not been shown the children’s clothes or other evidence that could establish how the infants died.

“We were only told that our children had died,” relatives alleged, questioning how the infants had suffered fatal burns and calling for a proper investigation into the circumstances surrounding their deaths.

One affected woman alleged that no doctor or other hospital staff member came to the ward for nearly an hour after the fire broke out.

She also questioned how such a major fire could occur without other people in the hospital suffering even minor injuries.

The allegations by the parents could not immediately be independently verified, while hospital authorities have yet to respond in detail to all the claims.

Malik Israr, whose niece was admitted to the gynaecology ward, told Dawn that it was particularly unfortunate that the nursery was located in a building where repair and renovation work was under way.

He said that after the fire erupted, patients were asked to leave the building, forcing women who had recently given birth to rush down the stairs from the second floor.

The incident has raised fresh questions about fire safety arrangements and emergency preparedness at major public hospitals, particularly in areas housing vulnerable newborns who require incubators, oxygen and round-the-clock medical supervision.

PIMS administration has not issued a detailed response to the parents’ allegations. Police cordoned off the affected ward, intensive care unit, and mortuary to preserve evidence, restricting journalists and unauthorized personnel from speaking to staff or families.

Meanwhile, as grieving families gathered at the PIMS to collect the bodies of their newborn children, questions remained unanswered over the circumstances surrounding a fire that killed 14 infants in the hospital’s nursery.

The bodies were placed in the PIMS mortuary, where the process of handing them over to the families began later in the day.

According to HUM News correspondent Farah Mahjabeen, seven bodies had been handed over to relatives by the time of her report. The families left the hospital in ambulances with the bodies of their children.

Other bereaved relatives remained at the mortuary to complete the necessary paperwork and receive the bodies.

Police were deployed along the routes leading to the mortuary, with access restricted to media personnel and other unrelated individuals. Journalists were also prevented from entering the mortuary or speaking to the bereaved families.

The affected ward and intensive care unit were similarly cordoned off to preserve possible evidence as the authorities began preparing for a formal inquiry.

Hospital doctors and staff have also been restricted from speaking to journalists, leaving several questions unanswered about who was on duty when the fire broke out, how the emergency response was handled and whether the required safety protocols were followed.

According to the HUM News correspondent at PIMS, the windows of the affected ward were broken following the fire, while routine hospital operations continued and patients were being attended to.

Only patients and authorised personnel were being allowed into the affected areas, while security personnel prevented others from entering.

Meanwhile, parents have gathered outside the mortuary, where the bodies of the deceased infants are being handed over to their families, HUM News Farah Mahjabeen reported.

The PIMS administration has not yet spoken to the media. The district administration and police have also restricted media access, with journalists not being allowed to visit the ward where the fire broke out.

The hospital administration has yet to brief parents or the media on the latest arrangements. Media personnel and other people are currently barred from entering the affected ward.

The circumstances surrounding the PIMS fire, including its exact cause, the presence and response of medical staff, the condition of the ward and the adequacy of fire-safety arrangements, are expected to come under scrutiny following the deaths of the 14 newborns.

PIMS, established in 1985, is Islamabad’s largest public-sector hospital and one of the capital’s oldest major healthcare facilities. The hospital complex comprises several hospitals and teaching institutes.

Fires in large buildings are a recurring concern in Pakistan, with inadequate safety measures, weak enforcement of building codes and poor emergency preparedness frequently cited as contributing factors.

Political leaders visit PIMS

Several political figures visited PIMS following the tragedy and received briefings from hospital authorities.

National Assembly member Tariq Fazal Chaudhry expressed condolences to the families of the deceased infants and said he shared their grief in the tragic loss.

PTI leader Salman Akram Raja also visited the hospital and spoke to the media after receiving a briefing.

Health Minister Mustafa Kamal cut short his Karachi visit following the incident and was expected to reach PIMS to inspect the situation and meet hospital authorities.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed the health minister to immediately return to Islamabad, visit PIMS and submit a report on the incident.

President Asif Ali Zardari, Senate Chairman Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also expressed grief over the deaths.

Gilani called for a complete investigation and stressed the need for effective fire-safety and emergency-response arrangements at hospitals.