‘Pims admin just told us our baby is dead – we weren’t even allowed to see his clothes,’ say parents
A deadly fire at Islamabad’s Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) nursery has sparked outrage and raised serious questions over the safety of the hospital after 14 infants died, with grieving families alleging that staff were missing, emergency routes were blocked and firefighting equipment was unusable.
One mother, identified as Jameela Bibi, recalled the terrifying moments, saying there were no doctors or nurses around and no one knew where the emergency exit was. Despite undergoing the surgery herself, she said she was forced to flee the hospital with her baby.
The families of the victims alleged that when the fire broke out, the nursing staff was nowhere to be seen while fire extinguishers were allegedly not available near the nursery.
Questions have also been raised over the hospital’s fire hoses, with reports that the couple were missing, the hoses being unusable to put out the fire.
The Pims’ internal fire-fighting system failed to respond, prompting CDA fire tenders to arrive and start extinguishing the fire from outside. PIMS spokesperson Dr. Aneeza Jalil confirmed that the bodies of all the 14 children who died have been handed over to their families, while only one child has been evacuated from the nursery.
The tragedy sparked fierce accusations from parents who claimed they had to fend for themselves due to delays in the arrival of emergency services.
A grieving mother alleged that no doctor or hospital staff arrived for nearly an hour, questioning how such a large fire could have broken out without immediate intervention.
He further claimed that parents were not allowed to see their children’s clothes and were only told that their children were dead.
However, the CDA has provided a different account of its response, stating that it received a fire emergency call at 6:54 am, after which firefighting crews were dispatched just a minute later at 6:55 am. Amid growing outrage, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif immediately suspended the Federal Health Secretary and ordered an investigation into the tragedy.
Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal said that there are fire extinguishers in Pimz and he has responded immediately. However, he admitted that the hospital is working far beyond its current capacity.
The post ‘Pims admin told that our child is dead’ We were not allowed to see even his clothes’ parents say appeared first on Daily Pakistan News
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