From ‘expired’ fire extinguishers to ‘faulty’ fire alarms, what caused the Jhansi Hospital fire?

Following the fire accident at Jhansi Hospital that killed 10 newborns, a “defective alarm system” and “expired fire extinguishers” were discovered, according to a media report. A fire broke out at a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi on Friday evening.

Families of the victims told News18 that the lives of the ten newborns could have been saved if the fire extinguishers had worked properly.

Even the fire safety alarms did not function properly during the tragic incident, delaying the evacuation of the hospital, the report said.

According to the reports citing a man, identified as Kripal Singh Rajput, who came to visit his grandson, each bed in the infant ward could accommodate six children. There were a total of 18 beds.

During his visit to the hospital, the fire broke out and he saved 25 newborns.

However, the government has rejected allegations of safety shortcomings. UP Deputy Chief Minister Brijesh Pathak denied media reports claiming that the medical college had fire extinguishers.

“All firefighting equipment at the medical college was in perfect order,” PTI reported, quoting Pathak. He said a fire safety audit was conducted in February and a mock exercise in June.

Several images of the accident emerged showing alarmed patients and their caregivers along with police officials assisting in the rescue operations.

Confirming the cause of the fire, the minister said: “The fire was caused by a short circuit. Health Minister and state deputy CM Brajesh Pathak reached there at night. 10 children had died there. The rest of the children are safe.”

About 16 children were injured and are being treated at a local hospital, the report said.

CM Yogi Adityanath announced financial support ₹5 lakh each to the families of the deceased babies and ₹50,000 aid for families of injured children. Moreover, he has proposed a high-level inquiry into the incident, the report of which will be submitted on Saturday evening.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also extended his condolences to the grieving families.

“Heartbreaking! The fire accident at Jhansi Medical College in Uttar Pradesh is heartbreaking. My deepest condolences to those who have lost their innocent children in this. I pray to God to give them the strength to bear this immense loss. The local administration is doing , under the supervision of the state government, make all possible efforts for relief and rescue,” PM Modi wrote on X.