UP Hospital Fire That Killed 11 Babies Accidental, Finds Panel: Sources

The fire at a hospital in Uttar Pradesh that killed 11 newborns, was entirely accidental and not deliberate, a two-member committee investigating the matter has found.

The fire broke out around 10.45 pm on Friday in the neonatal wards of Jhansi’s Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College, one of the largest government hospitals in the state’s Bundelkhand region.

Sources said the fire was caused by a short circuit in the switchboard and could not be brought under control as sprinklers were not installed in paediatrics ward. The doctors told the investigation committee that water sprinklers are not installed in the NICU ward due to the presence of newborns.

At the time, six nurses and other staff and two doctors were present in the NICU ward. One of the nurses sustained burns while attempting to douse the fire. 

The fire from the switchboard had started spreading towards the oxygen concentrator. A paramedical staff and two others went in with fire extinguishers. But by then, the fire had spread elsewhere, sources said, pointing to the findings of the committee.