ROMANIA - No hope for babies injured in fire

Romania (AP):

Israeli doctors who rushed to Romania yesterday said they feared there was not much they could do to help seven premature infants who were critically burned in a hospital fire that left four other babies dead. Romanian doctors at Bucharest's Grigore Alexandrescu children's hospital, where the injured babies are being treated, said the infants weigh just 1 to 2.5 kilograms (2.2 to 5.5 pounds) and are burned on up to 80 per cent of their bodies and respiratory tracts.

Responding to a public outcry about the accident, Bucharest Deputy Mayor Mircea Iovici said city hall had fired the management at the maternity hospital.

Monday's blaze at Giulesti maternity hospital forced the evacuation of dozens of babies and women, throwing light on Romania's poorly funded and understaffed health system. Romanian health official Marius Savu said there had been one nurse on duty at the intensive care unit instead of the mandatory four because of staffing cuts, Mediafax news agency reported.