ISLAMABAD – A horrific fire incident at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) shocked the nation on Wednesday. It also prompted investigation and now Capital Development Authority (CDA) report exposed string of alleged safety failures that may have hampered the evacuation of children during the deadly blaze.
CDA Fire Brigade’s assessment revealed that emergency exits were reportedly locked from the outside and blocked by barriers, raising serious questions over how patients could have escaped in an emergency. The fire claimed the lives of seven children.
The blaze erupted at around 6:55am, with the first fire tender reaching PIMS within just six minutes. However, firefighters reportedly faced significant obstacles during the rescue and firefighting operation.
CDA report suggested that an electrical short circuit or overloaded plug may have triggered the fire. More alarmingly, the hospital’s fire prevention and life safety arrangements were found to be inadequate and below prescribed standards.
The response itself also came under scrutiny, with the report pointing to alleged interference by PIMS security personnel during the fire brigade’s initial efforts. Poor crowd-control arrangements at the scene reportedly added to the difficulties confronting emergency responders.
Despite hurdles, rescue teams evacuated 19 people, including seven children, 10 women and two men. Yet the operation ended in tragedy as seven children lost their lives in the nursery inferno.
A massive emergency response was mounted, involving six fire tenders, six ambulances and one rescue van. As many as 44 operational personnel and six officers participated in the operation, while a water bowser was also deployed. Firefighting teams from G-10, I-9, G-5 and Fire Headquarters joined the emergency response.
The tragedy also triggered disturbing questions about staffing inside the incubation centre. Claims have surfaced that no doctor, ward boy or other staff member was present when the fire erupted. Parents of the affected children have likewise alleged that hospital staff were absent during the crucial moments of the emergency.
CDA findings have now placed the PIMS administration under intense pressure to explain the condition of its emergency exits, the state of its fire protection systems and the adequacy of its evacuation procedures.
The government has already moved against officials following the tragedy. Federal Health Secretary Aslam Ghauri was suspended in the aftermath of the deaths, while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif constituted a high-level inquiry committee headed by former Interior Secretary Shahid Khan to investigate the incident transparently.
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