A devastating fire swept through a maternity ward at a major public hospital in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Wednesday, killing 14 newborn babies.
The blaze broke out on the third floor of the Mother and Child Health Ward at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), one of the country’s leading public hospitals.
Hospital officials said an electrical fault in an air-conditioning unit was suspected to have triggered the fire.
Witnesses described chaotic scenes as thick black smoke filled the ward and terrified families scrambled to escape.
The situation became particularly critical in the neonatal intensive care unit, where the door was reportedly locked as the fire spread, trapping babies inside.
Security personnel were also accused of preventing people from leaving while the flames and smoke rapidly engulfed the area.
Authorities said rescue teams arrived nearly two hours after the fire reportedly started.
One grieving father told journalists that his three-day-old daughter died in the fire and that he waited by the roadside for hours before help arrived.
Another woman whose baby died questioned why the newborns had been left inside the ward as the fire spread.
A mother who managed to escape was seen outside the hospital holding her soot-covered newborn. She described hearing people scream and watching them run for their lives as smoke filled the ward.
Families gathered outside the hospital as a nurse called out the names of the babies who had died.
Several other patients were seen emerging from the building with soot covering their faces. One woman, clutching her 10-day-old baby, expressed gratitude that her child survived.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi expressed their condolences over the tragedy.
Sharif ordered that those responsible for any negligence be identified and face strict punishment.
The fire has also renewed concerns about safety standards in Pakistani buildings, where fires are frequently blamed on inadequate safety measures, weak enforcement and poor compliance with building regulations.
In January, more than 65 people reportedly died in a fire at a shopping centre in Karachi, while another mall fire in the city in 2023 claimed at least 11 lives.
Authorities are expected to investigate the circumstances surrounding the Islamabad hospital fire, including the reported delay in rescue efforts and the conditions inside the neonatal ward.