Fire at Coronavirus Hospital in Southern Iraq Kills at Least 92 People
ASAAD NIAZI/AFP via Getty Images
13 Jul 2021
A fire ripped through the Chinese coronavirus ward of a hospital in Nasiriyah, Iraq, on Monday, killing at least 92 people, Iraq’s state news agency reported Tuesday.
The incident took place at al-Hussein Teaching Hospital in Nasiriyah, the capital of Iraq’s southeastern Dhi Qar Governorate.
“The fire began in a quarantine facility for Covid-19 [Chinese coronavirus] patients attached to the main hospital,” the
Wall Street Journalreported, citing local health officials.
“Health crews carried charred bodies out of the burning hospital while many patients were coughing from the rising smoke,” a Reuters journalist at the scene of the fire reported.
The Health Ministry has not provided an official account of the cause of the fire.
The new ward, opened just three months ago, contained 70 beds, said two medical officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.
Ammar al-Zamili, spokesman for the Dhi Qar health department, told local media there were at least 63 patients inside the ward when the fire began. Maj. Gen. Khalid Bohan, head of Iraq s civil defense, said in comments to the press that the building was constructed from flammable materials and prone to fire.
It was the second time a large fire has killed coronavirus patients in an Iraqi hospital this year. At least 82 people died at Ibn al-Khateeb hospital in Baghdad in April when an oxygen tank exploded, sparking the blaze.
The Associated Press
BAGHDAD A fire swept through a coronavirus ward in southern Iraq, killing at least 50 people and injuring dozens more, Iraqi medical officials said late Monday.
The officials said all those who died suffered severe burns during the blaze at al-Hussein Teaching Hospital in the southern city of Nasiryah. At least 50 people were killed and others were in critical condition, they said.
The officials said the fire was caused by an electric short circuit, but did not provide more detail. Another health official in Dhi Qar province, where Nasiriyah is located, said the fire erupted when an oxygen cylinder exploded.
Iraqi state TV says fire in coronavirus ward kills 36 people
by Qassim Abdul-zahra, The Associated Press
Posted Jul 12, 2021 5:01 pm EDT
Last Updated Jul 12, 2021 at 5:11 pm EDT
BAGHDAD (AP) A fire swept through a coronavirus ward in southern Iraq, killing at least 36 people, Iraqi state TV said late Monday
The report said all those who died suffered severe burns during the fire at the al-Hussein Teaching Hospital in the southern city of Nasiryah.
The new ward, opened just three months ago, contained 70 beds, said two hospital officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
Iraqi state TV says fire in coronavirus ward kills 36 people
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BAGHDAD (AP) – A fire swept through a coronavirus ward in southern Iraq, killing at least 36 people, Iraqi state TV said late Monday
The report said all those who died suffered severe burns during the fire at the al-Hussein Teaching Hospital in the southern city of Nasiryah.
The new ward, opened just three months ago, contained 70 beds, said two hospital officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
It was the second time a large fire has killed coronavirus patients in an Iraqi hospital this year. At least 82 people died at Ibn al-Khateeb hospital in Baghdad in April when an oxygen tank exploded, sparking the blaze.