At least ten children were killed in a fire that broke out at a hospital in Uttar Pradesh, India on Friday. The casualties may go up, said an official, reports NDTV.
The fire, possibly due to a short circuit, broke out in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of the Maharani Laxmibai Medical College. Doctors and medical staff were seen evacuating patients by breaking the windows of the ward filled with smoke before fire brigade officials reached the spot.
“As per the staff present in the ward, the fire broke out around 10.35 pm. Thirty-seven children have been safely rescued. The fire broke out in one of the two units of the children's ward possibly due to a short circuit. The children who were in the outer part of the NICU were rescued, along with some of those who were in the interior part. We have formed a committee to probe the cause of the fire. While most of the children were rescued, as per initial information, 10 children were killed in the accident,” said Avinash Kumar, district magistrate of Jhansi. Six fire engines are present at the spot, he added.
A total of 54 children were admitted in the NICU at the time of the incident and 44 could be rescued. Seven of the 10 victims have been identified, said Brajesh Pathak, the deputy chief minister and the minister of medical education of Uttar Pradesh.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
