According to hospital officials, three children aged between one and 12 days were placed in the same cradle when the fire erupted

Published on: Aug 22, 2026, 15:28:01 IST

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A newborn died and two others sustained serious injuries after a fire broke out in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of the district hospital in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara early Saturday morning, hospital officials said.

The hospital administration has ordered an inquiry to determine the cause of the incident and review safety arrangements in the unit. According to hospital officials, the NICU’s oxygen supply line was shut off during the fire, averting a potentially more dangerous situation.

“A short circuit occurred in the plug socket of a warmer in the NICU. The fire spread to the cradle where three infants were kept, igniting plastic components and bedding materials. Staff members immediately removed the babies, but they were already weak due to infection and sustained burn injuries,” said Dr. Kanchan Dubey, a pediatrician at the hospital.

According to hospital officials, three children aged between one and 12 days were placed in the same cradle when the fire erupted. Thirty other newborns were accommodated in separate cradles.

The injured infants were rushed to Jabalpur Medical College in the absence of a pediatric surgeon at the district hospital. One of the infants, a girl born to Aditya Verma at 10.30pm on Friday, succumbed to her injuries en route to Jabalpur.

“Hospital staff managed to extinguish the fire promptly and shifted all infants to other wards. The injured were transported to Jabalpur by ambulance under the supervision of two doctors to ensure continuous medical care during the journey. One died on the way,” Dubey said.

Police are investigating the incident, while hospital management is conducting a parallel probe.

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