A Pakistani nurse has been hailed as a national hero after risking her life to rescue a newborn from a deadly hospital fire in Islamabad. The Independent reported that Razia Noreen ran into the smoke-filled nursery at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) on August 26 and emerged eight seconds later with the baby in her arms.

Noreen and her colleagues had just checked on 15 newborns and were preparing injections in an adjacent room when she noticed flames. She immediately dropped the syringe and rushed into the nursery.

CCTV footage showed Noreen entering the burning room, shielding the baby against her chest and carrying the child to safety. She then returned toward the nursery in an attempt to rescue the other babies, but the fire and thick smoke had made the room almost impossible to enter.

Noreen and another nurse tried to crawl through the doorway, where the smoke was thinner. However, the flames forced them back.

Within minutes, Noreen learned that the other 14 newborns had died. The baby she rescued was the sole survivor.

A government inquiry found that the conditions inside the nursery deteriorated catastrophically within about two minutes. It also identified serious failures in fire safety and the hospital's emergency response. Eight officials have since been suspended and disciplinary proceedings initiated.

The cause of the fire remains disputed. Hospital and district officials initially blamed an exploding air-conditioning unit, while the hospital later said a blast involving a nebulizer had triggered the blaze.

The Pakistani government has announced that Noreen will receive the Sitara-i-Khidmat (Star of Service), one of the country's prestigious civil awards, along with a financial reward.

Despite the recognition, Noreen said she does not consider herself a hero. Instead, she described her actions as the instinctive response of a nurse and a mother.

“Can any mother watch a child burning in a fire?” she said. “No. Mothers do not do favours for their children. It is their duty.”

Noreen, who is a Christian and belongs to Pakistan's small Christian minority, has received praise from people across religious communities.

But the rescue has also left her deeply traumatised by the deaths of the other babies. She said she has barely slept since the fire and sometimes feels as though she can still hear the children's cries.

“The deaths of those children have traumatised me,” she said, adding that it could take years for her to recover.

Noreen said she entered the burning nursery without thinking about her own safety because the babies had been entrusted to the nurses' care by their mothers.

“I quickly decided that I would do my job,” she said. “I acted as a mother. I did not care about my life.”

She said her only objective was to save all the children and that she had not thought about any reward or financial compensation.

“I had only one mission: This is the time to save lives,” she said.

Still overcome with emotion, Noreen addressed the mothers who lost their newborns in the fire.

“Please forgive me for not being able to save your babies,” she said through tears.