Iraqis mourn Nasiriyah hospital fire victims

Public frustration over government's lack of action on safety grows after second deadly blaze in months

A fire ripped through and destroyed a Covid-19 unit at a hospital in Nasiriyah, Iraq.

More than 90 people died in the fire that destroyed much of a hospital in Nasiriyah, Iraq.

The exact cause of the blaze at Al Hussein hospital is not clear, but local media reports suggested it broke out after an oxygen tank exploded.

Witnesses described fire crews battling the blaze in a Covid-19 ward as it spread quickly through the building.

A view of the damage caused by the fire at Al Hussein hospital in Nasiriyah.

People inspect the damage after a fire at a hospital in the city of Nasiriyah in southern Iraq. At least 92 people were killed while dozens were injured.

Initial police reports suggest an oxygen tank explosion in the hospital's Covid-19 ward caused the fire.

Health sources said the death toll could rise because many patients were still missing.

Angry relatives of patients gathered in front of the hospital where they clashed with police.

Iraqi President Barham Salih condemned the corruption and mismanagement that he said led to the catastrophe.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhimi ordered the suspension and arrest of health and civil defence managers.

Iraq's healthcare system is struggling to cope with the coronavirus crisis, which has killed 17,592 people and infected more than 1.4 million.

There is little left to salvage after the catastrophic blaze.

Search operations continued after the fire was brought under control, but thick smoke made work difficult.

'I heard a big explosion inside the coronavirus wards and then fire erupted very quickly,' said Ali Muhsin, a hospital guard who helped to carry injured patients away from the fire.

Anger mounted among Iraqis after a hospital fire killed more than 90 people on Tuesday, in one of the worst disasters the country has experienced in recent months.

The Iraqi authorities faced accusations of negligence from grieving relatives, friends and hospital staff at the scene of the deadly blaze at the Al Hussein coronavirus hospital in the city of Nasiriyah.

Those grieving for their loved ones cried openly and with anger as they placed blame for the fire on the provincial government of Dhi Qar, where Nasiriyah is located, and the federal government in Baghdad for years of mismanagement and corruption.

“People entered the hospital sick and left with their bodies burnt alive, or even just bones,” said Mujab Abdulrahman, 21, who witnessed the fire.

“I saw how people were rushing to save victims from the fire. It happened at night so people could not see the exit, firefighters were unable to reach the place,” he told The National.

Mr Mujab placed responsibility for the tragedy on the engineering department in Nasiriyah’s health directorate.

While the exact cause of the blaze remained unclear, local media reports suggested it broke out after an oxygen tank exploded.

“The hospital was built under poor conditions that did not follow the safety requirements set by international health standards,” he said.

Mr Mujab said he believes the official death toll is inaccurate and that the real number of fatalities is higher than the figure released by the government.

“I witnessed more than 25 people being killed within a couple of minutes,” he said, adding that he thought around 140 people had died in total.

Hours after the fire began rescue teams continued to search for those missing from the ward.

Rescue workers and bystanders were seen lifting rubble and metal plates in the search for survivors and victims. Some were looking for body parts.

“What we are doing now should be done by a medical and forensic team, we are the ones looking for bones and raw flesh in this place,” Ali Al Rubaie, 46, told The National.

“Someone must be held accountable,” he said.

Abbas Al Hadidi was crying at the hospital’s front door. He did not have any relatives in the hospital but lives in the neighbourhood.

“The government did not do enough to protect these people,” he said.

“I'm crying for all the people who were killed, for the children, women and men, for everyone. We need to know what happened? Why did this happen?”

Mr Al Hadidi said he feared the incident would be forgotten about in a matter of days but urged authorities to do more to protect civilians.

It was Iraq’s second deadly hospital fire in three months, and the country’s president Barham Salih blamed corruption for both.

Citizens of Nasiriyah called on the government to step down.

“What has happened is a genocide. The Iraqi citizen has no rights, there is no investigation into the fire even though the government says it has opened one, but it’s all lies,” said Ahmed Hussein, 55.

“We are voiceless,” he said.

With additional reporting from Haider Husseini and Azhar Rubaie in Iraq.