A fire that tore through a five-storey shopping centre in the Iraqi city of Kut has left at least 60 dead, officials said.
The blaze at the mall, which opened seven days ago, broke out on Wednesday night and has since been brought under control.
Social media videos showed firefighters rescuing people from the mall’s roof, but state media reported that many are still missing.
“A tragedy and a calamity has befallen us,” regional governor Mohammed al-Miyahi said, adding that legal action would be brought against the shopping centre’s owner.
The governor has also declared three days of mourning.
Videos on INA’s news channel show flames ripping through several floors of the Corniche Hypermarket in the city’s centre, as firefighters try to douse them.
Other clips circulating on social media appear to show a small number of people on the roof during the fire, as well as the burned out insides of the centre.
A number of people were rescued from the building by firefighters, al-Miyahi told local media.
Ambulances were still taking casualties to hospitals in the city, which is about 160 km (100 miles) southeast of Baghdad, at 04:00 local time.
“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 interior ministry said in a statement.
It added that 45 people were rescued from inside the building.
Nasir al-Quraishi, a doctor in his 50s, told AFP he lost five family members in the blaze.
“A disaster has befallen us,” he said. “We went to the mall to have some food, eat dinner and escape power cuts at home.
“An air conditioner exploded on the second floor and then the fire erupted and we couldn’t escape it.”
Ali Kadhim, 51, had been looking for his cousin, who is missing alongside his wife and three children, at the main hospital and the mall where rescuers were searching the wreckage.
“We don’t know what happened to them,” he said.
Moataz Karim, 45, identified the bodies of two of his relatives – one of whom began working at the mall three days ago – on Thursday morning.
“There is no fire extinguishing system,” he told AFP, as he waited for further news of a third missing relative outside the forensic department.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani expressed condolences to the families of victims in a statement.
He has also asked the interior ministry to launch an immediate investigation into the fire’s causes, as well as to identify shortcomings and “to take all necessary strict measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents”.
The mall, which included a restaurant, opened a week ago, according to the interior ministry.
Safety standards are often poorly observed at Iraqi construction sites, which have face decades of mismanagement and corruption. (BBC)
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