Peer Khan said, "I was not looking for my daughter. I took out the first 12 children I saw. Our five-day-old girl died of suffocation." He added, "Weren't they all someone else's children? How could I leave them?"
Officials said that on September 21, at 11:40 pm, five newborn babies, including Peer Khan's daughter, died in a fire that broke out in the SNCU (Special Newborn Care Unit) of RIMS Hospital in Adilabad. Three newborns died at the time of the incident on September 21 and two died during treatment on September 23.
Telangana Medical and Health Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha said, "As per preliminary investigation, a short circuit in the AC unit of the SNCU caused the fire and release of toxic gases. A total of 27 newborns were in the SNCU at the time of the accident. The remaining rescued children have been admitted to various hospitals in Adilabad and are undergoing treatment."
Telangana government has constituted a three-member investigation team to investigate this accident. Damodar Rajanarasimha said, "Further action will be taken on the basis of the report submitted by the committee."
When the BBC team reached the SNCU at the accident site, the walls and floors there were blackened and black trails of smoke were visible. Abandoned slippers, soot-stained floors and medical equipment were scattered here and there.
Kumara Dinesh, a resident of Ginera in Indraveli mandal, told the BBC, "First the AC machine caught fire in the nursing station area. Then three explosions were heard. When I went inside, I could not see anything because of the smoke. I came out gasping. Half an hour later, someone brought my daughter out." Dinesh told that his wife had given birth to a daughter in the same RIMS hospital 15 days ago, and their daughter had died within a few hours of being taken out of the SNCU.
RIMS Hospital was opened in 2008 with the aim of providing super specialty medical services to the tribal people of Adilabad district. Tribal people of Utnoor Agency area mostly come here for better treatment. Thalassemia and anemia are common among pregnant women in this area. Because of this, mothers and their babies are more likely to suffer from low birth weight, anemia, and respiratory problems.
RIMS Director Dr. Jaisingh told BBC, "To reduce the mortality rate of new-born children, keeping these complications in mind, the central government has created SNCUs in nine areas across the country under the 'Sankalp Project'. Adilabad RIMS Hospital is one of them."
Pendur Vikram, a resident of Kinwat, Maharashtra, had come to meet his younger brother's daughter, who was undergoing treatment at RIMS. Vikram told the BBC, "My younger brother came out of the SNCU after seeing his daughter, and shortly thereafter the blasts occurred. When I went inside, I saw thick smoke. On the advice of a doctor there, I broke the glass with a fire extinguisher. Then I went out with the child. I also brought some other people outside."
Tribal association member Poosam Sachin told the BBC, "When we came to know about this matter, everything seemed to be in chaos. Everyone was running. Our tribals do not speak Telugu properly. Many of our people are being treated here. We helped them and shifted them to another ward. Even wearing slippers, one is not allowed to roam near this ward because it spreads the infection. But such a huge negligence came to light. Is."
Some families went inside SNCU to take their children out of danger. One of them was Kaveeti Nirmala from Anukunta village in Adilabad district. Nirmala said, "I was to be discharged after a day. I was shocked by the fire and smoke. I could not breathe. I went inside to save my granddaughter, even though her body was burning. I recognized my granddaughter by the mark near her ear and the color of the clothes spread on the bed and brought her out." Nirmala alleged that when the children were brought out, some of the nursing staff present there did not pay any attention.
However, Dr. Jaisingh, Director of Adilabad RIMS Hospital, rejected the allegations of negligence of the staff and said that the staff helped the people and took out the babies. He also refuted the allegations of substandard AC units. Dr. Jaisingh said, "We reached the spot within a few minutes of the incident. There was no negligence on our part. The doctor on duty, the head of the department, junior doctors and other staff together took out the children within ten minutes. They were admitted to private hospitals in ambulances."
