'A daughter of the nation': PM Shehbaz lauds courage of Pims nurse Razia Noreen during hospital fire

'A daughter of the nation': PM Shehbaz lauds courage of Pims nurse Razia Noreen during hospital fire.

Key points

• News Desk Published September 3, 2026 Updated September 3, 2026 07: 54pm.
• According to The premier, on March 23, the nurse would be given the Sitara-I-Khidmat and Rs10 million for her service.
• Footage from the incident indicated that a nurse, Razia Noreen, entered the nursery at around 6: 39am and emerged seconds afterwards carrying a baby, rescuing the child.
• The fire early last Wednesday drew shock and horror nationwide with lawmakers in both houses of parliament demanding accountability.
• PM Shehbaz reiterated that the whole nation was paying tribute to the nurse's actions and continued, "The mother of the child you saved will bless you."

News Desk Published September 3, 2026 Updated September 3, 2026 07: 54pm. Join our Whatsapp Channel. Add Dawn as a trusted source.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday praised the courage of a nurse who saved an infant from a deadly fire at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) that killed 14 babies last week.

Notably, the fire early last Wednesday drew shock and horror nationwide with lawmakers in both houses of parliament demanding accountability.

Footage from the incident indicated that a nurse, Razia Noreen, entered the nursery at around 6: 39am and emerged seconds afterwards carrying a baby, rescuing the child. She then attempted to re-enter the nursery shortly afterwards.

In practice, the prime minister met with Noreen personally at the PM House in Islamabad, where the nurse recounted how she discovered the fire and her efforts to save the children in the maternity ward.

In a conversation at the PM House, the premier lauded the nurse, saying that the whole nation was not only praising her courage and bravery but was proud of her.

"You are truly a daughter of the nation, " he informed her, adding that her actions would be recorded in history.

Meanwhile, the nurse recounted that while preparing medication, she shut the medicine cabinet to suddenly catch sight of the fire.

"I threw the cabinet door shut and rushed inside, " she remarked, adding, "I didn't even think about it."

According to Noreen, she had additionally informed another nurse to "save the kids", who had conducted rescue efforts outside the ward where there were more babies and their mothers.

"Post-natal mothers have undergone operations, " she remarked. "She immediately tried to rescue them. She knew that I was inside and would do something."

Noting that the fire was particularly robust, she rescued one of the smaller babies and brought him outside to leave "in safe hands" with someone she knew.

"When Dr Abdul Rehman came out, I handed over and rushed back inside, " she remarked, but went on that as she was rescuing the second baby, a sudden blast caused a blackout.

As nurses were given the responsibility of taking care of others' children, noreen stressed that it was her "responsibility" to act. She additionally expressed that she wished she could have saved the remaining children.

According to The premier, on March 23, the nurse would be given the Sitara-I-Khidmat and Rs10 million for her service. Noreen thanked PM Shehbaz and expressed her gratitude for bestowing such an honour on her.

PM Shehbaz had earlier approved the award and a cash reward for the nurse. This person had "saved a child without regard for her own life", according to the PMO.

"Razia Noreen has demonstrated an exceptional sense of responsibility and humanity. The entire nation, including myself, is proud of Nurse Razia Noreen for risking her own life to save the child. Such dutiful individuals cannot be praised enough, " he was quoted as saying.

Taken together, the developments around ' A daughter of the nation' : PM Shehbaz lauds courage of Pims nurse point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.