At least 61 people have been confirmed dead after a massive fire engulfed a newly opened shopping mall in the eastern Iraqi city of Kut, according to the Iraqi Interior Ministry on Thursday.
In detail, most of the fatalities died in bathrooms from suffocation. Rescue teams found 14 charred bodies yet to be identified.
“The tragic fire claimed the lives of 61 innocent citizens, most of whom suffocated in bathrooms, and among them 14 charred bodies yet to be identified,” the Ministry said in a statement. Authorities had previously put the toll at 50 dead.
The fire broke out late Wednesday night at the Hyper Mall, a major commercial center that had been operating for just five days. The cause of the fire remains unknown, though early reports suggest the blaze may have started on the mall’s first floor.
Emergency crews worked through the night as ambulances continued to transport the injured well into Thursday morning. By 4:00 am, local hospitals in Kut, located roughly 160 kilometers (100 miles) southeast of Baghdad, were overwhelmed by the influx of casualties.
An AFP correspondent at the scene described chaotic conditions in medical wards and reported seeing charred bodies among the fatalities.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani called for an immediate investigation into the causes and circumstances of the Kut shopping mall fire tragedy and directed the dispatch of a fully-equipped medical team to support efforts to rescue and treat the injured.
Mourning declared, legal action to follow
In the aftermath of the fire, Wasit province governor Mohammed al-Miyahi declared a three-day mourning period across Wasit province, urging residents to stand in solidarity with the victims’ families.
He also announced that legal proceedings would be initiated against those responsible for the building’s construction and management. “A lawsuit will be filed against the building and mall owner,” he said, as quoted by Iraq’s state-run INA news agency.
He added that investigators would determine whether negligence or safety violations contributed to the deadly blaze.
As Iraq reels from yet another preventable urban disaster, questions are mounting over fire safety enforcement and oversight in the country’s rapidly expanding commercial infrastructure.
AL MAYADEEN
