2009 Hermosillo daycare center fire

Many of the injured were cared for in hospitals in Guadalajara, Jalisco. Although 15 medical specialists were flown in to treat the victims, some children were moved to hospitals in other cities in the state of Jalisco which had doctors with specialties in children's burns. One boy could not be moved for further treatment as he has been declared brain dead.[14] Two children were taken to a Shriner's burn hospital in Sacramento, California, USA, for treatment.[14] "A lot of it is how deep the burn is and where it's located and how bad is the smoke inhalation," said Tina Palmieri, assistant chief of burns for the hospital. She reported that there was only a 50 per cent chance of survival for one of the three-year-old girls who sustained burns to over 80 per cent of her body.[20][21] This girl was accompanied by her father and arrived in California by Mexican military transport. Her mother, who had herself been working in the day care center, was taken to a Ciudad Obregón hospital after pulling her daughter and several other children out of the fire.[20] The second patient, a young boy, began a series of skin graft surgeries on Sunday June 7, reported David Greenhalgh, chief of burn treatment at the Sacramento hospital. Both of these patients were listed in critical condition, monitored for infection, and unable to talk because breathing tubes had been inserted.[20][22]

In the aftermath, Sonora state Health Minister Raymundo López Vucovich issued updates. He reported that some of the hospitalized children had been suffering from kidney failure due to severe loss of body fluids caused by the burns. Others in the hospital had respiratory symptoms from smoke inhalation.[23] The burns on some of the victims were so bad authorities had problems identifying them.[24] Javier Alexis Pacheco, aged two, was rushed to the hospital for treatment for burn injuries.[22] There were communication mishaps. Four-year-old Hermán Vásquez, with burns on 75 per cent of his body, was rushed to Chávez Hospital but his family did not find out where he was until 6 p.m. that evening.[25]

The investigation determined that the cause of fire was a malfunctioning of the air conditioning unit in the neighboring warehouse, which was not equipped with fire extinguishers or smoke alarms.[26][2][27] "The fire was caused by the overheating of an air conditioner due to continuous and prolonged use," said Attorney-General Eduardo Medina Mora. The air conditioner melted its aluminum housing and spread to license plates and paper work in the state government warehouse, which was closed and empty when the fire started.[28]

The investigation revealed that the child care center's fire alarms did not alert staff to the fire because they were installed below a brightly colored ceiling tarpaulin. It is believed that smoke filled the area between the warehouse's high roof and the false ceiling created by the tarp. When the tarp caught fire, smoke and flames collapsed onto the slumbering daycare infants and instantly filled the daycare with thick smoke.[29][30]

Investigations further revealed that in 2005 the day care center owners had been advised by the IMSS to remove the tarp, widen the main entrance, and increase auxiliary fire exits to bring them up to fire regulation size. Subsequent safety inspections passed without the work being carried out and contracts were re-awarded for the continued operation of the center.[29] Sonora attorney general Abel Murrieta Gutiérrez went on a media campaign accusing the IMSS of criminal negligence, stating that they had been aware of safety violations in the building ever since they had sent the warning letter in 2005.[31]

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• Authorities arrest 7 state officials over Mexico childcare centre fire

The center was not equipped with water sprinklers which would have automatically engaged in the event of a fire. A marked emergency exit was bolted shut and one mother at the child care reported that no one was able to obtain the key. Hermosillo Fire Department Chief Martín Lugo reported that, although the facility had recently passed a safety inspection, the fire alarms for the building were not installed correctly. Parents stated that although the daycare had a staff of 20, only six were on duty on the Friday of the blaze.[32] In addition, the center was set up for pre-school children aged two to four, but Governor Bours had reported that younger infants were being cared for in the center. "We always have to be open to improvements, especially when we have a tragedy that has so moved us," said IMSS director Kara, who admitted that their security requirements may need to be overhauled in light of the fact that the daycare passed safety inspection on May 26.[11]

There were later suspicions that the warehouse fire was started intentionally.[33]

In September 2016 it came to light that the alleged letter sent to the daycare center in 2005 had been falsified by state officials in an attempt to divert attention from the government, since the fire had actually begun in an adjacent warehouse used by the state ministry of finance to store documents.[34][35] A theory that was investigated was that the fire was intentionally started in the warehouse with the purpose of destroying potential evidence of excessive debts incurred by Eduardo Bours during his term as governor.[36][37][38] A federal judge ordered the Sonora Attorney General's office to launch an investigation into both Bours and his former Attorney General Murrieta Gutiérrez for document falsification as well as altering the scene of the crime.[39][40]

Fourteen northern Sonora state finance department officials came under investigation and seven were arrested in connection with the fire for negligent homicide.[2] "They are employees and officials with the Finance Department who have a direct responsibility for the warehouse where the fire started."[3] Two IMSS workers were also among those arrested.[41] All seven state employees would be released on bail, along with all three co-owners.[42] The only person to serve any time was Delia Irene Botello Amante, an IMSS local coordinator who was the last government employee to visit to the daycare before the fire. She was arrested in 2011 and released on January 1, 2014 due to technical issues.[42]

The state Finance Department filed a negligence civil lawsuit against the day care owners and the Social Security Institute. The highest official in the Social Security Institute resigned and others were suspended.[3] The IMSS sued Bours on May 22, 2019 for negligence in the investigation of the fire.[43]