14 Infants Die in Pakistan Hospital Fire; Witnesses Report Locked Door

Just after dawn on Wednesday, a devastating fire erupted in a maternity ward at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) in Islamabad, claiming the lives of 14 infants as parents waited hours for help to arrive.

Hivsa Walid and her sister-in-law, who had recently given birth, were near the room when they heard a shout and initially thought a patient had died. Seeing smoke, they fled with the newborn, who does not yet have a name, leaving belongings behind and descending the stairs in a blur of panic.

The fire broke out in an air-conditioning unit on the third floor of the mother and child unit at PIMS, one of the main state-run hospitals in Islamabad. Only one of the 15 babies present was saved.

Khurram Mehmood, 40, told AFP news agency he lost his three-day-old daughter, recounting a long wait for rescue workers.

Jaweria, mother of another victim, said the door to the maternity ward was locked. “For two hours I kept crying and wailing,” she said. “Police arrived after four hours and said they are here to investigate.” She asked, “Why did the doctors leave the children there?” and shouted, “To hell with you, rescue team and police. Babies burnt to death there, but nobody could save them.”

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