At least 100 dead, 150 injured in Iraq wedding fire

Timour Azhari | September 27, 2023

At least 100 people have been killed and 150 injured in a fire at a wedding celebration in the district of Hamdaniya in Iraq’s Nineveh province, with local sources saying the toll was expected to rise.

The fire on Tuesday ripped through a large events hall in the northeastern region after fireworks were lit during the celebration, local civil defence said, according to state media.

Video from a Reuters correspondent at the site showed firefighters clambering over the charred wreckage of the building in search of survivors.

Preliminary information indicated that the building was made of highly flammable construction materials, contributing to its rapid collapse, state media said.

Ambulances and medical crews were dispatched to the site by federal Iraqi authorities and authorities in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, according to official statements.