Speaking at a press conference in Islamabad, Mustafa Kamal expressed his condolences to the families who lost their newborn children in the fire at the nursery of PIMS Hospital. He said he had travelled from Karachi to Islamabad immediately after receiving information about the incident and visited the hospital to assess the situation.
The minister said preliminary information suggested that the fire started after an air-conditioning unit exploded in the neonatal intensive care unit. He added that the presence of oxygen intensified the blaze and contributed to its rapid spread.
According to Mustafa Kamal, an oxygen line inside the ward also played a significant role in the spread of the fire. However, he stressed that the exact cause of the incident would only be established after the investigation is completed.
He said around 26 fire extinguishers were used during the rescue operation, helping prevent the fire from spreading further, while fire brigade teams also reached the scene. However, the minister acknowledged that there was no sprinkler system installed in the nursery.
Mustafa Kamal said relevant administrative and enforcement authorities were present at the hospital to investigate the incident, while officials from the Ministry of Health were also monitoring the situation.
He said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had ordered a high-level investigation and that action would be taken against those found responsible once the report is completed.
“Everyone will have to go through accountability because human lives are involved,” the minister said, adding that if any negligence was found, it would be addressed to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Discussing fire safety at PIMS, Mustafa Kamal said the Islamabad administration’s Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) had issued several fire safety notices to the hospital over the past few years.
He said a notice was also issued in 2025, highlighting the absence of a fire safety NOC, problems with safety equipment and the failure to conduct mock emergency exercises.
The minister said the hospital administration had maintained that it was trying to comply with the notices. However, he added that all aspects of the matter were now being reviewed in light of the tragedy.
Mustafa Kamal also highlighted the increasing pressure on PIMS due to the growing number of patients. He said the hospital was originally designed to handle an outpatient department (OPD) load of around 250 to 300 people, but approximately 9,500 patients now visit the facility every day.
He said Islamabad’s population had been around 300,000 when PIMS was established but has now grown to nearly 3.5 million. In addition, large numbers of patients from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir also seek treatment at the hospital.
The minister said steps had been taken over the past year and two months to increase the number of hospital beds and healthcare facilities in Islamabad, with further details to be provided later.
Referring to the new PIMS building, Mustafa Kamal said that had the relevant institutions been shifted there on time, the situation might have been different. However, he stressed that the presence of critically ill and nursery patients remained necessary and that determining the actual cause of the fire was the primary objective.
A citizen also protested during the press conference, briefly creating a disorderly situation.
Responding to questions from journalists, Mustafa Kamal said the preliminary investigation report was expected within the next two to three days.
He added that CCTV footage was also being reviewed. According to preliminary information, a spark from the air-conditioning system may have triggered the fire, which engulfed the entire room within a very short period.
Mustafa Kamal reiterated that those responsible would face accountability and said he was also ready to be held accountable if the investigation found any fault on his part.
