At least six newborn babies died in the same hospital ward in Bangladesh within hours of each other on Wednesday, said health officials, who launched an investigation.
The newborns, aged between one and three days, were in the post-delivery ward of Ad-Din Hospital, a private facility in the capital Dhaka.
“An investigation is under way, and we need some time to determine the cause of the deaths of the newborns,” Nahida Yasmin, a director at the hospital, told reporters.
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Prabhat Chandra Biswas, head of the government’s health department, noted that air conditioning in the ward was not working in the early hours on Wednesday, as temperatures in Dhaka were around 32 degree Celsius (89 degrees Fahrenheit).
“There is no alternative ventilation once the air conditioner is turned off,” he told reporters, saying the atmosphere inside was suffocating.
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One baby fell sick and was taken to an intensive care unit, but was returned to the ward an hour later.
Around dawn, five other babies were feeling unwell. “All were put on ventilators but could not be saved,” Yasmin said.