The death toll from the devastating fire in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Jhansi Medical College has risen to 11, officials confirmed on Sunday.
The tragedy unfolded late Friday night when a short circuit sparked a fire in the NICU, claiming the lives of 10 newborns initially.
On Sunday, District Magistrate Avinash Kumar reported the death of another child during treatment, bringing the total fatalities to 11.
At the time of the incident, the SNCU housed 49 newborns, out of which 39 were rescued. However, the cause of the fire remains unclear.
While the hospital administration attributes the fire to a short circuit, officials have yet to provide details about how the electrical failure occurred.
Preliminary investigations suggest that the short circuit was caused by an overload of medical equipment in the SNCU.
The resulting sparks reportedly ignited the oxygen concentrator, escalating the blaze beyond control. Police are continuing to probe other potential causes of the fire.
The SNCU primarily cares for newborns suffering from conditions like jaundice and pneumonia.
Experts highlighted that the ward was accommodating three times its intended capacity at the time of the incident.
Consequently, critical equipment like warmers and monitoring devices had to operate continuously, causing them to overheat.
Hospital administration allegedly failed to regulate the use of this equipment on Friday night, leading to extreme overheating, a short circuit, and eventual oxygen leakage. The leaked oxygen fueled the flames, which rapidly engulfed the ward.
Chief Fire Officer Rajkishore Rai confirmed the overload as the likely trigger for the short circuit and stated that other aspects of the incident are under investigation.
The incident has raised serious concerns about overcrowding, infrastructure safety, and administrative negligence at the hospital. Authorities have promised a thorough investigation to determine accountability.