Pakistan hospital fire: Nurse haunted by 14 babies she could not save after 8-second rescue
Pakistani nurse hailed as a hero says she simply acted as a nurse and mother
Dubai: Eight seconds were enough for Razia Noreen to save one life — and leave her haunted by the 14 she could not reach.
When flames erupted inside the newborn nursery at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences on August 26, Noreen had just checked on the 15 babies in her care and was preparing injections in an adjoining room.
She saw the flames, dropped the syringe and ran.
Noreen lifted one of the babies into her arms, pressed the child against her chest to shield it from the fire and smoke, and rushed out of the nursery.
Security camera footage shows that she was inside for just eight seconds.
She handed the newborn to a doctor — and immediately turned back towards the flames.
“I wanted to save the others,” Noreen told The Associated Press in her first interview with international media since the tragedy. “I did not lose hope.”
But conditions inside the nursery were deteriorating with terrifying speed.
Noreen and another nurse dropped to the floor, where the smoke was thinner, and tried to crawl through the doorway. She could see nothing. Smoke choked her and violent coughing made it difficult to breathe.
Still, she tried to move forward.
8 seconds that saved a life
15 newborns were inside the PIMS nursery when the fire broke out on August 26
8 seconds: Time a government inquiry says Razia Noreen spent inside the burning nursery during the rescue
1 baby was carried to safety — the sole survivor
14 newborns died as conditions deteriorated rapidly
About 2 minutes: Time in which conditions inside the nursery “deteriorated catastrophically”, according to the inquiry
51 seconds: Length of the CCTV clip capturing the dramatic rescue
8 officials were suspended after an inquiry found serious fire-safety and emergency-response failures
Sitara-i-Khidmat: The prestigious civil award Pakistan has announced for Noreen
The flames eventually forced her back.
Within minutes, she learned that the other 14 newborns were dead. Noreen collapsed to the floor in shock.
The baby she had carried against her chest was the sole survivor.
Eight seconds
A government inquiry later found that conditions inside the nursery had “deteriorated catastrophically” within approximately two minutes.
A 51-second security camera clip showing Noreen running into the nursery and emerging with the baby has since been widely seen in Pakistan.
Those eight seconds have made her a national hero.
The government has announced that Noreen will receive the Sitara-i-Khidmat, or Star of Service, one of Pakistan’s prestigious civil awards, as well as a financial reward.
But Noreen does not see herself as a hero.
To her, what happened was the instinctive response of a nurse — and a mother.
“Can any mother watch a child burning in a fire?” she asked. “No.”
“Mothers do not do favours for their children. It is their duty.”
Noreen, a Christian from Pakistan’s small religious minority, has been praised across religious lines for her actions.
She said nurses become like mothers when newborn babies are separated from their own mothers and placed in their care. They feed them, give them medication and watch over them.
“The mothers had entrusted their babies to us,” she said.
“I acted as a mother. I did not care about my life.”
‘Those babies do not let me sleep’
The praise and promised award, however, have done little to ease Noreen’s anguish over the children she could not reach.
She told AP she has barely slept since the fire.
When she approaches the nursery, memories of the flames and the babies return. At times, she feels as though she can still hear their cries and collapses to the ground.
“The deaths of those children have traumatised me,” she said. “It may take me years to recover.”
Noreen was also physically unwell when she spoke to AP, saying she had a fever of 103 Fahrenheit (39.4C).
But she wanted to tell what had happened.
“Those babies do not let me sleep,” she said.
Fire safety failures
The tragedy has also raised serious questions over fire safety at one of Pakistan’s leading government hospitals.
Hospital and district officials initially said an exploding air-conditioning unit caused the blaze, while the hospital later said a blast involving a nebuliser sparked the fire.
A government inquiry identified serious failures in fire safety and emergency response. Eight officials have been suspended and disciplinary proceedings initiated.
Noreen, meanwhile, said she was grateful to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the Pakistani people for honouring her, but insisted that neither recognition nor money motivated her.
When she entered the burning nursery, she did not know whether she would emerge alive.
“I had only one mission: This is the time to save lives,” she said.
“My aim was to save all the children. I did not think about my own safety for even a second.”
Then, speaking about the mothers of the 14 babies she could not reach, her voice broke.
“Please forgive me for not being able to save your babies,” Noreen said through tears.
