DOUBLE JEOPARDY. Critical Covid-19 patients are among the 82 confirmed casualties after a fire hit Ibn al-Khatib Hospital in Baghdad on Saturday night (April 24, 2021). Officials said the fire broke out following a blast at a storage room with oxygen cylinders (Photo courtesy of EPA/TASS)
CAIRO – Some 82 people were killed by a fire in Baghdad’s hospital, while 110 others were injured, the Baghdad Al Youm news portal reported on Sunday, citing the Iraqi Interior Ministry.
"The fire at the Ibn al-Khatib hospital killed 82 people, some 110 people were injured," the statement read.
The fire at the Ibn Khatib In the Diyala Bridge area in the southeast of the Iraqi capital broke out following a blast at a storage room with oxygen cylinders.
The room was located at the area housing intensive care unit for critically ill persons with breathing problems.
The two-story building’s interior was almost completely destroyed by fire. About 30 firefighting units were sent to the scene.
According to eyewitnesses, the fire caused widespread panic in the hospital, with people running around in search of emergency exits.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi ordered a thorough investigation into the tragedy.
The hospital’s chief doctor, chief safety official and persons in charge of the building’s technical maintenance have been detained.
It turned out that the hospital had no fire protection systems, and flammable materials were used in its interior design. (TASS)
