14 newborn babies killed in fire at Pakistan hospital’s maternity ward

At least 14 newborn babies have died in a fire that broke out in the maternity ward at one of Pakistan’s most prominent state hospitals.

The blaze began in the early hours of Wednesday and engulfed the ward at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, the biggest state hospital in Islamabad.

A statement by the hospital administration confirmed that 14 newborn babies in the intensive care unit (ICU) died in the fire.

Dr. Aneeza Jalil, a hospital spokesperson, speaking to the media said that 15 babies were in the ward at the time and that one baby was saved by a doctor.

Women who had just given birth had to run down several flights of stairs and climb out of windows and down ladders to escape.

Foreign media reported that witnesses claimed the door to the maternity ward was locked, preventing the saving of more babies. 

However, Rana Imran Sikander, the hospital's executive director, has responded to the claims saying the ward's door was not locked but was manned. He cited the need to protect babies from being stolen, something that has happened before at government hospitals.

Pakistan's health minister, Mustafa Kamal, said many of the babies were in incubators or on oxygen, and that the oxygen canisters made the fire worse.

Investigators said the fire was started by a faulty air conditioning unit, which exploded inside the nursery where newborn infants under intensive care were sleeping.