AP Exclusive: Nurse who saved baby from Pakistan hospital fire wishes she could have saved the rest
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Razia Noreen and her colleagues had just checked on the 15 newborns in their care at the hospital nursery in Islamabad and were preparing injections for some of them in an adjacent room when she saw…
Razia Noreen, a nurse at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, witnessed a devastating fire break out in the hospital nursery where she and her colleagues were caring for 15 newborns. In a split second, she noticed the flames and immediately dropped the syringe, rushing into the nursery to save the infants. As the thick smoke filled the room, Noreen managed to lift one baby into her arms and shield it from the fire, quickly handing the child to a doctor in a nearby room.
Within eight seconds, the nurse emerged from the nursery, handing the newborn to the doctor, and then turned back towards the flames, wishing she could have saved the remaining 14 infants. Noreen lamented her inability to save the other young lives, saying she did not lose hope even in the face of the rapidly escalating situation.
Together with another nurse, she attempted to crawl through the doorway, but the smoke was too thick, and the flames forced her to retreat. Overwhelmed with shock, the lone survivor's nurse collapsed to the floor in tears. The brave nurse's selfless act saved one life, but the tragedy claimed the lives of the other 14 newborns.
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