I added the map above to highlight Pakistan for reference.
It took first responders and police 2 hours to arrive to the hospital? Why didn't the hospital have a fire sprinkler system installed? There had to have been a lot of staff around this neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). How could the NICU staff in good conscience run out and leave the newborn babies to die in that fire? I have added the universal hospital fire safety protocols above for Pakistan hospitals to implement going forward. (emphasis mine)
BBC News published August 26, 2026: Families of newborns killed in Pakistan hospital fire demand answers. The parents and families of 14 newborns killed in a hospital fire in Pakistan's capital of Islamabad are demanding answers from officials.
A fire in an air conditioning unit spread quickly through oxygen connections, causing a blast that shattered windows, and claimed the lives of babies as young as three days old.
Now, eyewitnesses claim the doors to the ward were locked, leaving people unable to rescue their babies, something hospital officials have denied.
DW News published August 26, 2026: Pakistan investigates fire that killed 14 newborns in intensive care. Only one baby was rescued after the blaze broke out at a major government hospital in Islamabad. It's thought an air-conditioning unit compressor exploded inside the ward. Grieving families are demanding answers and accountability. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed sorrow over the fire and ordered an immediate investigation.
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NPR.org
written by The Associated Press staff
Wednesday August 26, 2026
ISLAMABAD — A fire erupted early Wednesday in a nursery for newborns at a major government hospital in Pakistan's capital, killing 14 babies, according to hospital officials and the government.
The Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences in Islamabad housed at least 15 newborns in the nursery when the fire broke out, hospital officials said.
At least one baby was rescued, officials said, while Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal confirmed at least 14 babies had died.
Rescue officials said the fire began about 6:45 a.m. after an air-conditioning unit compressor exploded inside the nursery in the gynecology ward.
Firefighters quickly responded and extinguished the blaze and rescue teams began cooling operations at the site, local media reported. Islamabad Chief Commissioner Suhail Ashraf later said the fire had been extinguished and authorities were coordinating with the families.
Within hours, the Islamabad district magistrate appointed a multiagency fact-finding committee with directions to submit a report within 24 hours. The panel will investigate the cause of the fire and its spread, determine whether adequate fire-safety measures were in place and evaluate the emergency response, a government notification said.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed sorrow over the fire.
"A tragedy involving children is an irreparable loss," said Sharif, who ordered an immediate investigation.
President Asif Ali Zardari also offered condolences to the families, describing the deaths as "heartbreaking and an irreparable loss."
Zardari called for those responsible to be identified and dealt with under the law and urged hospitals to ensure effective fire-safety measures and emergency procedures, particularly in wards caring for newborns.
The deaths of the children sent a wave of shock and grief across the country. Police were deployed at the hospital as grieving parents and relatives gathered, some weeping while others called for accountability and demanded answers about how the fire began and whether the nursery had adequate firefighting equipment.
Mohammad Sami said she gave birth three days earlier and her baby was receiving intensive care in the nursery when the fire erupted.
"I don't know what to say or whom to blame," she said through tears. "I have lost my child."
Hospital officials told families that the bodies would be released after the necessary paperwork was completed, Sami said.
Kamal, the health minister, told local Geo News channel that he was traveling from Karachi to Islamabad to personally oversee the investigation.
He said the director-general of health and the federal health secretary were already at PIMS, one of Islamabad's largest public hospitals, which recently was the site of a medical examination of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Officials were in contact with the families, according to Kamal, who said the immediate priority was to support the parents and return the infants' bodies to them.
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