Six newborn babies died following a gas leak in the neonatal ward of Ad-Din Medical College Hospital in Dhaka’s Moghbazar area on Wednesday morning. The incident was confirmed by Sheikh Zahidul Islam, Deputy Police Commissioner of DMP’s Ramna Division. Authorities fear the death toll could rise as investigations continue into the cause of the leak.

Initial reports indicate that a malfunction in the hospital’s air conditioning system caused the gas leak. The affected ward housed 11 mothers and six newborns aged between one and two days. According to Professor Dr. Nahida Yasmin, Director of Hospitals and Nursing at Ad-Din Hospital, the ward is air-conditioned, and patients or relatives sometimes request to turn off the AC due to excessive cold.

Dr. Yasmin added that two infants first showed signs of illness around 3 a.m. and were taken to the neonatal ICU, where they initially appeared stable. However, by dawn, all six newborns deteriorated rapidly and were transferred again to the ICU, where two were declared dead on arrival and four others later died despite ventilator support.