Three infants died after a fire broke out at the Special Newborn Care Unit (SNCU) ward of Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Telangana’s Adilabad district late on Monday (September 21) night. The incident occurred around 11.40 p.m. As many as 25 other infants being treated in the ward were safely rescued and evacuated in time.
The sections are enclosed and have glass windows. When the fire broke out, smoke accumulated inside the unit. The rescued infants were subsequently shifted to nearby private hospitals for further treatment. The two infants who died, aged five and four days respectively, were preterm babies. One of them died immediately after the incident, while the other succumbed four hours later. Vani.
“The SNCU has two flanks, one with 11 beds, and another with 13 beds, while the Kangaroo Mother Care area located opposite the SNCU has four beds. The third infant, a two-day-old girl who was born prematurely at 28 weeks and weighed 1.1 kg, was in a critical condition and died while being shifted to a nearby hospital, confirmed Director of Medical Education (DME) N. Adilabad SP Akhil Mahajan said the incident occurred at around 11.40 p.m., and police teams reached the hospital within three minutes, by 11.43 p.m. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
As soon as the fire was noticed, the attendants of patients broke the glass windows and evacuated the babies from the affected areas,” the DMHO said.
The police have registered a case and launched an investigation into the incident. Upon receiving information about the fire, a fire tender was rushed to the hospital and the blaze was brought under control. The exact cause of the fire was is yet to be ascertained. Telangana Health Minister C. Damodar Raja Narasimha meeting the families of the affected children at the hospital. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy expressed grief over the incident and conveyed his condolences to the families of the infants. He stated that the death of infants was extremely tragic. The Chief Minister directed officials to ensure better medical treatment for the children undergoing treatment at the hospital and to continuously monitor their health condition. The Minister also reviewed the rescue and relief measures undertaken following the incident and the arrangements made to safely shift the infants undergoing treatment in the SNCU to other wards. He also sought updates from doctors on the condition of the infants and other children receiving treatment and directed them to provide the best possible medical care while closely monitoring their health. The Minister later met the families of the affected children and assured them of the government’s support.
