SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) President Bafel Talabani on Wednesday expressed his “deepest” condolences to the families of the victims of the deadly fire in Hamdaniya and offered his assistance.
“It is with a heavy heart that we share the news of the tragic fire in Hamdaniya,” Talabani said in a message.
“The incident has left us deeply saddened and worried. We extend our sympathies to the injured and the families of the victims.”
“The PUK stands ready to provide any necessary assistance. May the deceased find peace in Paradise and may the injured find healing.”
More than 100 people were killed and 150 injured in a fire at a wedding party in Hamdaniya district in Iraq’s Nineveh province that left civil defence searching the charred skeleton of a building for survivors into the early hours of Wednesday.
Nineveh Deputy Governor Hassan al-Allaq said that 113 people had been confirmed dead, with state media putting the death toll at at least 100, with 150 people injured.
The fire ripped through a large events hall in the north-eastern region after fireworks were lit during the celebration, local civil defence said, according to state media.
Iraq’s Interior Ministry said it had issued four arrest warrants for owners of the wedding hall, state media reported, and President Abdul Latif Rashid called for an investigation.
“We saw the fire pulsating, coming out of the hall. Those who managed got out and those who didn’t got stuck,” said Imad Yohana, a 34-year-old who escaped the inferno.
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 Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, according to official statements.
Eyewitnesses at the site said the building caught fire at around 10:45 p.m. local time (1945 GMT) and that hundreds of people were in attendance at the time of the incident.
