58 Patients Rescued After Fire Breaks Out in Asian Hospital NICU in Sambhajinagar

A fire broke out in the neonatal intensive care unit of Asian Hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar around 2:15 a.m., leading to the emergency evacuation of 58 patients, including nine newborn babies. No casualties were reported in the incident.

The blaze was triggered by a short circuit in an air conditioning unit located inside the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Hospital duty staff spotted smoke emerging from the air conditioner and swiftly raised an alert. The nine newborns were immediately moved out of the ward and shifted to nearby medical facilities, including Ghati Hospital, MGM Hospital, and Sanjeevani Hospital, with the consent of their guardians.

Shoaib Hashmi, Managing Director of Asian Hospital, credited the quick reaction of the medical personnel for averting a tragedy. He stated that the duty staff noticed the smoke coming out of the AC and immediately activated code red using their presence of mind to evacuate the newborns. Hashmi added that the fire caused by the short circuit was controlled in time and that a major disaster was prevented because the hospital's fire safety system was intact and staff members were well-trained.

The Padampura Fire Department received an emergency call regarding the blaze at 2:27 a.m. Following the alert, a team from the CIDCO Fire Department rushed to the hospital premises with fire tenders to bring the flames under control. Chief Fire Officer Ashok Khandekar noted that a major disaster was successfully averted due to timely action by the responders and hospital staff.

The incident marked the second hospital NICU fire in Maharashtra within a span of ten days. On August 26, a similar fire broke out at Dufferin Hospital in the Amravati district, resulting in the deaths of three newborn babies.