Rome (CNN) — A criminal investigation has been opened after two premature babies died within hours of each other on the night between August 12th and 13th in the San Maurizio Hospital in the northern Italian city of Bolzano, officials said.

The infants, both born three weeks ago—one in the 23rd week of gestation and the other in the 27th week of gestation—were diagnosed with an infection caused by the germ Serratia Marcescens, a common microbe that is dangerous only to people with compromising health conditions. The newborns each weighed about 700 grams (1.54 pounds).

The germ has been linked to the dishwashing soap used in the hospital, according to Josef Widmann, the medical director of the South Tyrolean Health Authority, who said in a news conference Thursday that all of the industr

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