3 newborns suffer burns after warmer catches fire in Madhya Pradesh hospital

Three newborns sustained burn injuries when a warmer malfunctioned and caught fire in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Chhindwara District Hospital in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday morning. The incident prompted the hospital staff to swiftly transfer the infants to Jabalpur Medical College for specialized treatment. At around 1:50 am, a spark in the heating unit's filament ignited a fire, with the newborns inside the equipment at the time.

Hospital personnel immediately removed the infants from the warmer and extinguished the flames. The affected babies were later evaluated by medical experts, including the Dean and Medical Superintendent of Chhindwara District Medical College, before being referred to Jabalpur for further care. According to the hospital administration, 33 newborns were present in the unit when the accident occurred, while the remaining 30 were evacuated safely.

Civil Surgeon Kanchan Dubey praised the hospital staff for their prompt response, noting that they successfully evacuated the unharmed infants under medical supervision. The incident has drawn attention to the shortage of specialized pediatric care in Chhindwara, prompting the infants' transfer to Jabalpur, where a pediatric surgeon was not on duty at the time.

Hospital authorities conducted an inspection of the equipment and called upon technicians to examine the warmer and other machines in the unit. Dubey dismissed any suspicion of negligence, stating that the incident seemed to be an unfortunate accident. The hospital administration is now expected to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter, including an examination of the warmer and other electrical equipment in the neonatal unit.