Overview
- The deaths occurred in the post-delivery ward of Ad-Din Hospital in Dhaka in the early hours of Wednesday when six newborns aged one to three days fell ill and died within hours of each other.
- Hospital staff reported the ward’s air conditioning had been switched off overnight and then turned back on, and one baby was moved to the NICU before five more became sick and were put on ventilators but could not be saved.
- The health ministry has formed a three-member inquiry and the Criminal Investigation Department is conducting technical tests of the air-conditioning and electrical systems to check for faults or a gas leak.
- Families at the hospital say night staffing was minimal and described babies crying and vomiting before they fell ill, while health officials say initial information does not indicate mistreatment.
- The cluster has provoked public outrage and could prompt tighter regulation and inspections of private neonatal wards as Bangladesh faces very high pre-monsoon temperatures that make indoor ventilation critical.