LAHORE: A fire broke out in the gynaecology ward of Lahore General Hospital on Tuesday, forcing the evacuation of people, including pregnant women, from the building.
Rescue teams reached the hospital soon after the blaze was reported and began an evacuation and firefighting operation. Officials said the fire was brought under control before it could spread to other parts of the hospital.
No casualties were reported.
A security guard whose condition deteriorated after he inhaled smoke was shifted to the hospital’s own emergency department. The administration said he was out of danger and receiving treatment.
Smoke filled the ward as the fire took hold, causing alarm among patients and staff.
Those in the affected block were moved out as a precaution, and the prompt evacuation kept patients and others clear of the area where the fire was burning.
Accounts of the cause differ. Officials said the fire originated in the exhaust system, while sources attributed it to a short circuit in electrical wiring installed in the ceiling of the building. An investigation is under way to establish what set it off.
Lahore General Hospital, on Ferozepur Road, is a public sector teaching hospital attached to Ameer-ud-Din Medical College and the Postgraduate Medical Institute, with around 1,600 beds. Its obstetrics and gynaecology department runs two units and records between 9,000 and 9,500 births a year, according to the hospital.
Tuesday’s fire comes six days after 14 newborns were killed in a blaze on the third floor of the Mother and Child Hospital at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) in Islamabad. Fifteen infants were in the ward when the fire broke out early on Aug 26; fourteen suffered severe burns and later died, while one was rescued. Initial reports suggested a spark from an air conditioner, with the fire spreading through oxygen points. The health secretary was removed and an inquiry panel constituted on the prime minister’s orders.
That tragedy set off a province-wide review in Punjab. Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz directed hospital administrations to complete fresh fire safety audits within 24 hours and submit a report on the findings. A consolidated report from all districts was to reach her office by Aug 27. Deputy commissioners were told to check whether fire extinguishers and other firefighting arrangements at teaching hospitals, district and tehsil headquarters hospitals, Maryam Nawaz Hospitals and Maryam Nawaz Health Clinics were available and in working order, and to assess emergency exits in consultation with Rescue 1122.The chief minister also asked the health departments and the chief executive of the Infrastructure Development Authority of Punjab to prepare a feasibility report on installing fire alarm systems, smoke detectors and water sprinklers in intensive care units, nurseries, emergency units and tertiary care hospitals.
Rescue 1122 was separately directed to review the availability and functionality of hydrant points at and near health facilities and identify sites for new ones.The Punjab Healthcare Commission issued its own directives to public and private hospitals on the implementation of fire safety measures.
The housing department said last week that fire hydrants would be installed around 57 large public hospitals in the first phase of a provincial plan, with Wasa asked to identify suitable locations.
Hospital fires are not new to the country. The Islamabad Citizens Network, in a statement issued after the Pims deaths, recalled comparable incidents at Lahore’s Services Hospital in June 2012, the National Institute of Child Health in Karachi in January 2020 and the nursery of Sahiwal Teaching Hospital in June 2024.
At General Hospital on Tuesday, the outcome was different. The ward was cleared, the fire was put out, and the hospital said the only person taken ill had been treated and was stable.
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