Jhansi hospital fire: Death toll reaches 17 after two more rescued babies die | Latest news India

Two more babies rescued from a fire that destroyed the Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College died in Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, taking the total death toll from the fire to 17, PTI reported, citing a senior official. The incident, which took place on November 15, had already claimed the lives of ten newborn babies on the day it happened.

A total of 39 newborns were rescued from the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit during the fire.

Narendra Singh Sengar, the principal of the medical college, told PTI that two more of the rescued babies died on Saturday. While ten babies died in the fire, the others died later due to their “diseases”, he added.

A post-mortem examination was carried out on the two deceased babies on Saturday, and in both cases the cause of death was confirmed as “disease”. According to Sengar, the bodies have been returned to their families.

Both babies had a birth weight of 800 grams, and one of them also had a heart defect, Sengar added.

Earlier, on Wednesday, three babies rescued from the fire at the NICU ward of Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi died due to their medical conditions.

According to doctors, one of the babies, born prematurely weighing 1.2 kg, died of low blood pressure; another died of infection and DIC, while the third, also premature and weighing 1.2 kg, succumbed to respiratory failure and shock.

With these deaths, the total number of rescued babies who died due to ailments rose to five. Narendra Singh Senger said the deaths during treatment occurred due to serious health problems and not due to burns.

A four-member team to investigate

A four-member team led by Director General of Medical Education and Training Kinjal Singh visited the Maharani Lakshmi Bai Medical College on Monday to investigate the fire.

The team recorded statements from doctors and staff, examined the fire-damaged ward and equipment and collected details about the rescued newborns. The investigative committee is expected to announce its findings within seven days.

The tragic fire at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Maharani Lakshmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi could have been avoided if hospital authorities had acted on the recommendations of a panel that conducted an electricity safety audit at the facility five months ago.

The safety audit report, dated June 20, 2024, was based on an inspection conducted on June 17 and 18 this year by a two-member team: Chandra Bhushan Chaubey, deputy director of electricity safety in Jhansi, and Mulayam Singh Yadav, electricity safety officer in Jhansi.

The report revealed serious safety issues in several departments and units, including the administrative building, auditorium, anatomy and pathology departments. This revealed that several wiring connections were exposed and junction boxes had been left open, significantly increasing the risk of fire.