In a heart-wrenching incident on Friday night, ten newborn infants perished in a fire at the neonatal intensive care unit of Maharani Laxmibai Medical College and Hospital in Jhansi, India. The fire reportedly started due to a short circuit on the ground floor, where the NICU was situated, according to Sachin Mahur, the medical superintendent of the hospital. Tragically, all victims were under one year old and on life support. Out of the 49 infants in the ward, 17 were rescued, while the rest either returned home with their parents or were transported to other facilities. One nurse also sustained burn injuries.
Mahur mournfully remarked that some of the deceased newborns were slated for discharge within days. “The fire escalated too rapidly for any rescue efforts to be effective,” he stated. This incident follows a similar tragedy in New Delhi earlier this year, where seven newborns lost their lives under comparable circumstances, drawing attention to the persistent issue of fire safety within Indian healthcare facilities.
In 2011, a catastrophic hospital fire in Kolkata resulted in the deaths of 93 individuals, prompting widespread calls for reform. However, a 2023 study pointed out that despite the implementation of new building codes and fire prevention systems, enforcement remains inadequate, contributing to the ongoing occurrence of such disasters. Visually harrowing images of the devastated ward have flooded social media, provoking grief and outrage. One distraught parent lamented on camera, “Who will return my baby?”
In response to the tragedy, the government announced a compensation of 500,000 rupees (approximately $6,000) for the bereaved families. Nevertheless, India's fire preparedness remains severely lacking. Data presented to Parliament in 2019 revealed that the country has only 3,377 fire stations instead of the required 8,559, and its fire service personnel number around 55,000, falling drastically short of the needed half-million.
This latest disaster underscores the urgent need for comprehensive reform in fire safety standards within Indian hospitals to prevent future tragedies.
Mahur mournfully remarked that some of the deceased newborns were slated for discharge within days. “The fire escalated too rapidly for any rescue efforts to be effective,” he stated. This incident follows a similar tragedy in New Delhi earlier this year, where seven newborns lost their lives under comparable circumstances, drawing attention to the persistent issue of fire safety within Indian healthcare facilities.
In 2011, a catastrophic hospital fire in Kolkata resulted in the deaths of 93 individuals, prompting widespread calls for reform. However, a 2023 study pointed out that despite the implementation of new building codes and fire prevention systems, enforcement remains inadequate, contributing to the ongoing occurrence of such disasters. Visually harrowing images of the devastated ward have flooded social media, provoking grief and outrage. One distraught parent lamented on camera, “Who will return my baby?”
In response to the tragedy, the government announced a compensation of 500,000 rupees (approximately $6,000) for the bereaved families. Nevertheless, India's fire preparedness remains severely lacking. Data presented to Parliament in 2019 revealed that the country has only 3,377 fire stations instead of the required 8,559, and its fire service personnel number around 55,000, falling drastically short of the needed half-million.
This latest disaster underscores the urgent need for comprehensive reform in fire safety standards within Indian hospitals to prevent future tragedies.
