The nurse who was working at the Giulesti maternity intensive care ward when the fire that killed five new born babies started last week was arrested for 29 days and accused of third degree murder and of having caused involuntary serious injuries. The decision can be challenged in court. The maternity blast in Bucharest last week killed five babies and seriously injured six others.

The nurse who was charged with the two counts, Florentina Carstea, was first arrested for 24 hours on Monday evening. On her one-hour trial on Tuesday, her attorney said she was supposed to have two junior nurses and one or two other nurses working with her, but the hospital was under staffed. When she was called by other doctors in the delivery room, the subordinates should have replaced her in the intensive care unit, to supervise the babies, according to her job description.

She is now being charged for leaving the intensive care unit unattended; had she been there when the fire started, it would have been easier to evacuate the new born babies and start the fire procedures on time and save the newborns, according to the prosecution.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Romanian nurse arrested after maternity fire (sfgate.com)
• Romanian nurse arrested after maternity fire (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Romanian nurse charged for alleged manslaughter following fire that killed 5 newborns (foxnews.com)
• Romanian nurse arrested after maternity fire (theglobeandmail.com)
• Nurse charged in Romanian hospital fire to appear in court (cnn.com)
• Prosecutor says staff were in separate room as fatal fire broke out (cnn.com)