Fire in Iraq Covid Ward: A huge fire broke out in the Corona Ward in a hospital in the southern city of Nasiriya, Iraq. 52 people died in this accident.
Relatives standing outside the hospital after the fire (AFP)
At least 52 people died due to a fire in the Coronavirus Isolation Ward of a hospital located in Iraq. This is the second incident of fire in the COVID-19 ward in the last three months. A fire broke out at Al-Hussein Hospital in the country’s southern city of Nasiriya late Monday night and civil defense teams doused the fire. A medical source from the Directorate of Health told AFP news agency, the main cause of the fire was the explosion of oxygen tanks.
Haider al-Jamili, spokesman for the local health authority, said on Tuesday morning that 52 bodies had been pulled out, while 22 people suffered burns from the fire. The fire has caused tremendous destruction in the entire COVID ward. He said, the victims died due to burns and work is on to trace the rest. Al-Jamili said there was also a fear that many people could still be trapped inside the building. There were 70 beds in this ward. Health sources told Reuters that the death toll could rise, as many patients are still missing. Two health workers are also among the dead.
Rescue work getting delayed due to thick smoke
Nasiriya health officials said a search operation was underway at the hospital, but thick smoke made it difficult to enter some of the burnt wards. In the video being shared on social media, it can be seen that a thick cloud of smoke is coming out from inside the hospital. On getting information about the incident, the families of the victims and local residents ran towards the hospital. A large number of people could be seen on the streets of Nasiriyah. There is a lot of anger among the people after this incident. Relatives of the victims clashed with the police and set two police vehicles on fire.
PM Mustafa al-Kadhimi called an emergency meeting
Iraq’s Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has declared a state of emergency in Dhi Qar province. Nasiriyah is the capital of this province. Al-Kadhimi said his office was holding an emergency meeting to discuss the causes and consequences of the incident. Earlier in April, a fire broke out in a COVID hospital in the capital Baghdad. In this incident 82 people died, while 110 people were injured. Let us inform that 14 lakh cases of coronavirus have been reported in Iraq so far, while 17 thousand people have died.
Also read: People undergoing treatment for Corona, oxygen cylinders burst in Baghdad hospital, 82 died in fierce fire
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