‘It felt like the baby’s heart was about to burst’

“All the babies were crying. It felt like the baby’s heart was about to burst. We could not understand why they were crying. My granddaughter eventually cried herself to death.”

These were the words of Masuda Begum, grandmother of one of the six infants who died at Ad-din Hospital in the capital. Six newborns died this morning, Wednesday, in the hospital’s post-operative ward on the first floor. Sitting outside the ward, she broke down in tears while recounting the incident.

Masuda Begum said she had brought her daughter-in-law from Tongibari in Munshiganj to the hospital on Monday night for delivery. Her daughter-in-law underwent surgery that same night and gave birth to a girl. The newborn had been healthy, though the mother, Mim Akter, was somewhat unwell. They had been admitted to the post-operative ward for the past three days.

“We asked the nurses for discharge yesterday afternoon ahead of Eid,” Masuda Begum said. “They told us we would be discharged this (Wednesday) afternoon. But now we are taking her away forever.”

Describing the events of the night, she said, “The baby cried all night. Sometimes I held her, sometimes her maternal grandmother did, and sometimes her mother did. This continued till three in the morning. We kept walking around carrying her and reciting prayers. Her mother also breastfed her. Then she quietened down for a while.”

She added, “I wanted to keep a fast before Eid, so I left the baby with her maternal grandmother. After having sehri, I came back and saw the baby was still lying quietly. Then I went to pray. After finishing my prayers, I heard they had taken my granddaughter to the NICU. A little later, they came and said she had died.”

The six infants died between 6:00 am and 9:00 am in the post-operative ward on the hospital’s first floor. Police suspect the deaths may have been caused by a leak in the air-conditioner gas line or due to some other mechanical fault.

Ramna Police Station said the incident is under investigation. Following the incident, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) collected samples from the ward.

Director general of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Professor Pravath Chandra Biswas, said a three-member high-level committee had been formed to investigate the incident.

He said the committee had been asked to submit its report within 72 hours. He made the remarks to journalists after visiting the hospital following the incident.