Candles were lit outside the Children’s Hospital at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad in memory of the 14 newborn babies who died in a tragic hospital fire.
Doctors, hospital staff, relatives of patients and members of civil society gathered outside the facility to pay tribute to the infants and express solidarity with their grieving families.
The fire broke out on Wednesday morning in the newborn ward located on the third floor of PIMS’s Mother and Child Health Centre. Hospital authorities said 15 newborn babies were present in the ward at the time of the incident. Only one baby was rescued, while the remaining 14 died.
The atmosphere outside the hospital remained sombre as participants lit candles in memory of the victims. Civil society members held placards, with some calling for a transparent investigation into the incident and strict action against those found responsible.
Grief and anger continue to prevail at PIMS following the tragedy, while the families of the victims are awaiting answers regarding the hospital’s fire-safety arrangements and the response to the emergency.
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Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has constituted a high-level inquiry committee headed by former federal secretary Shahid Khan to investigate the deaths. The committee has been tasked with determining the cause of the fire, assessing the hospital’s safety arrangements and identifying those responsible for any negligence.
Initial reports have offered different accounts of the cause of the fire. An initial hospital report attributed the blaze to the explosion of an oxygen-related device in the newborn ward, while an air-conditioning malfunction was also cited as a possible cause in the early reports. The final cause will be determined by the inquiry committee.
The tragedy has also renewed calls for a comprehensive review of fire-safety and emergency response arrangements at hospitals across the country. Families of the deceased infants and civil society representatives are demanding a thorough investigation and accountability for any lapses that contributed to the loss of 14 newborn lives.
