A fire erupted around 7 a.m. local time on August 26 in the neonatal intensive care unit and maternity ward on the third floor of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) hospital in Islamabad, killing at least 14 newborn babies and trapping 15 to 16 infants inside the ward [1, 2, 3, 4].
Only one infant was rescued alive from the blaze, which spread rapidly and was reportedly worsened by oxygen equipment in the room. The ward lacked an automatic sprinkler system [2, 4]. Officials attributed the fire to a suspected fault in the air conditioning system, with some reports pointing to an AC compressor explosion as the cause [1, 2, 5, 4].
Family members and witnesses accused hospital staff and security guards of locking neonatal unit doors during the fire, delaying rescue efforts and increasing casualties. Eyewitness Abdul Ghafoor said, "There was thick black smoke inside and patients were trapped... Rescue teams arrived after almost two hours" [6, 3, 5]. However, authorities have maintained rescue teams arrived immediately after emergency calls just before 7 a.m. and quickly controlled the blaze, fueling disputes over emergency response speed [6, 3, 5].
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy and ordered a thorough investigation with strict accountability. He said, "一定要追究责任，并依法予以最严厉的惩处。" [1, 3, 5].
UNICEF condemned the fire and called for urgent reviews of fire safety standards in medical facilities, stating "每个新生儿都应拥有安全的生命开端，每位母亲和儿童都应能在安全可靠的医疗机构中获得照护。" [7, 2].
PIMS is Islamabad's main public hospital but faces chronic underfunding and resource shortages, common in the Pakistani public health system. This fire is among the deadliest hospital fires in Pakistan in recent years, continuing a pattern of fatal incidents linked to poor safety standards [1, 4, 8].
Funerals for the deceased infants began on August 27, with grieving families demanding answers and justice [9, 10]. Authorities are expected to release the investigation’s findings as ordered by the Prime Minister.
