Four newborns killed in Bhopal hospital fire

New Delhi : Four newborns were killed in a fire incident at a government-run hospital in Bhopal. The fire swept through the newborn-care unit of the Kamala Nehru Children's Hospital. 

"Four children died in the fire that broke out in the special newborn care unit (SNCU) ward probably due to a short circuit. We reached the spot along with others soon after getting information about the incident. It was dark inside the ward. We shifted the children to the adjacent ward," State Medical Education Minister Vishwas Sarang said.

The fire was reported on the third-floor of the hospital, which also has the ICU ward. It started at around 9 pm and 8-10 fire extinguishers were rushed to the site, said Fatehgarh Fire Station in-charge Juber Khan.

The other newborns were shifted to the other wards during the rescue operations.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, condoled the deaths of infants and termed the incident as "very sad".

"We were unable to save three children who were already seriously injured in the fire incident which is very painful. The rescue operation was swift and the blaze is under control, now but unfortunately the lives of three children could not be saved," Mr Chouhan had tweeted earlier. Another death was reported later.

"A high-level probe into the incident has been ordered. The probe will be conducted by additional chief secretary (ACS) health and medical education, Mohammad Suleiman," the Chief Minister said in another tweet.

CM Chouhan has announced a compensation of Rs 4 lakh for the family members of the victims.

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