Parents describe panic, chaos and ultimately despair. At least ten newborns were killed in a fire that broke out around 10:30 p.m. on Friday evening in the neonatal unit of the Maharani Lakshmibai Teaching Hospital in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh state, about 450 km away south of the capital New Delhi. More than 50 babies were welcomed there.
Caregivers and parents broke windows and tried to enter the premises to save children, while, according to Indian media, they were receiving contradictory instructions which caused fear.
“They told us to go in and take our children, but by that time many were already dead,” Rani Sen, the aunt of one of the affected infants, told news agency ANI. “I don’t know where my baby is. The fire broke out and I couldn't get in to save him. Nobody could do it. Everyone was running in panic,” Santoshi told ANI, adding that the hospital had already denied her access to her child. “The nurses were pushing people out, but those who managed to get in grabbed all the children they could,” said one grandmother.
Video images broadcast by televisions showed charred beds and walls inside the ward, and crowds of distressed families waiting outside the facility. The nursing staff placed IVs on the rescued babies, all only a few days old, lying side by side on two hospital beds.
“Ten children have unfortunately died,” state number two Brajesh Pathak told journalists who asked him about the fire. Seven bodies out of the ten have so far been identified, he added. “Unfortunately, ten infants died despite all our efforts,” Doctor Narendra Sengar, director of a medical faculty attached to the hospital, confirmed to AFP. According to him, the other 39 babies in the ward were saved and are in good health, contrary to media reports that 16 of them were seriously injured.
Doctors and service staff rushed to the babies' aid “without worrying about their own lives,” continued Narendra Sengar. “Thanks to them, we were able to save 39 babies. They are true heroes,” he added.
An audit must be carried out
According to Brajesh Pathak, a safety audit of the hospital was carried out in February, followed by a fire drill three months later. “If any breaches are noted, strict measures will be taken against those responsible and no one will be spared,” he promised. Its leader, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, announced compensation of 500,000 rupees (approximately 5,600 euros) for the families of the bereaved and 50,000 rupees for the parents of injured children.
According to district official Avinash Kumar, the fire was caused by an electrical short circuit in the unit. Local media cited other officials as saying the fire started in a machine used to enrich the unit's atmospheric oxygen level. The high concentration of combustible gas allowed the fire to spread quickly and suddenly, they said. The weekly India Today affirms that the department's fire extinguishers had expired since 2020 and that the fire alarm did not go off in time.
These deaths are “heartbreaking,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on X. “My deepest condolences to those who lost their innocent children in this matter. I pray to God to give them the strength to bear this immense loss,” he added, asserting that “the local administration is doing everything possible for relief and rescue.”
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced that the affected families will receive compensation of Rs 500,000 (5 620 euros) and that all district officials had “been ordered to be on war footing to carry out relief and rescue operations”.
“I pray to Lord Shri Ram to bring salvation to the departed souls and speedy recovery to the injured,” he wrote on X, referring to Ram, one of the most important Hindu gods, also called Rama.
Fires are common in India due to poor construction practices, overcrowding and lack of compliance with safety regulations. At the end of May, six babies died in a fire that ravaged a pediatric hospital in New Delhi.
