For the explosion of an air conditioner compressor
Fourteen newborns died following a fire in Pakistan’s gynecology department today Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad. The Times of India and other local media reported it. According to Pims officials, at the time of the fire the ward was home to 15 newborns, and only one was rescued, as reported by local broadcaster Geo News. The fire apparently started due to the explosion of an air conditioner compressor inside the department, according to rescuers.
Rescuers say they have rescued at least 19 people from hospital: ten women, seven children and two men, the BBC reports.
Rescue teams have declared that the fire in the hospital is “now under control” and that the injured have been transferred to intensive care, the BBC reports, according to which the Pakistani authorities have set up a commission of inquiry which has been asked to present a report “within 24 hours” and “establish the facts and determine the causes of the fire”. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered an “immediate” investigation, the British broadcaster reports.
The city administration of Islamabad says that six fire brigade vehicles and four ambulances participated in the rescue operations, according to the Pakistani newspaper Dawn. According to a senior official quoted by AFP, the tragedy occurred before 7am.
