Dozens of people have died, according to initial reports, when an oxygen capsule exploded at a hospital in Baghdad, causing a massive fire.
At least 82 people were killed and more than 100 injured in a fire that broke out in the coronavirus intensive care unit of a Baghdad hospital, sparking anger and prompting the suspension of top officials in a country with a long-dilapidated health infrastructure.
The blaze on Saturday night at the Ibn al-Khatib Hospital in the Iraqi capital was sparked by an accident that caused an oxygen tank to explode, according to medical sources.
The health ministry announced on Sunday that 82 people were killed and 110 were injured in the blaze, while the Iraqi Human Rights Commission said 28 of the victims were patients who had to be taken off ventilators to escape the flames.
The flames spread quickly, according to civil defence officials, as “the hospital had no fire protection system and false ceilings allowed the flames to spread to highly flammable products”.
In response to the fire, Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi suspended Health Minister Hassan al-Tamimi amid angry calls on social media for him to be sacked, as part of a probe that would also include the governor of Baghdad.
The prime minister also declared three days of national mourning, while parliament said it would devote its Monday session to the tragedy.
Patients’ relatives scrambled during the blaze to save their loved ones.
Ahmed Zaki, who was visiting his brother when the fire broke out, described people jumping out of windows as the fire spread quickly throughout the unit equipped to treat COVID-19 patients.
“In the beginning, there was an explosion,” he said. “People were jumping … Doctors fell on the cars. Everyone was jumping.”
UN envoy to Iraq Jeannine Hennis-Plasschaert expressed “shock and pain” over the incident in a statement and called for stronger protection measures in hospitals.
The total number of people who have been infected with COVID-19 in Iraq is 102,528 including 15,217 deaths, the health ministry said on Saturday.
