Hospital in Iraq engulfed by tragic Covid-19 fire accident in Nasiriya
Murad Makhmudov and Lee Jay Walker
Modern Tokyo Times
Tragedy struck a hospital in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriya after an explosion caused by a suspected oxygen tank. It is known that fire spread quickly and that at least 44 people have died. Therefore, with another 67 people being injured by the explosion at a hospital treating coronavirus (Covid-19) patients, the fear is that the death toll will increase.
Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi immediately held a meeting with high-ranking ministers. Iraq, already blighted by countless problems, is faced with another extremely galling hospital incident.
In April, another tragic incident occurred involving an oxygen tank explosion in Baghdad. This led to the deaths of at least 82 people in a coronavirus ward caring for patients. Hence, two major incidents killing at least 126 people in Baghdad and Nasiriya in less than three months is horrendous.
Concerning the April tragedy, Reuters reports, “In April, a fire caused by an oxygen tank explosion at a COVID-19 hospital in Baghdad killed at least 82 people and injured 110 others.”
Mohamed al-Halbousi, the parliament speaker, responded to the latest tragedy in Nasiriya with utmost disdain. He tweeted, the blaze at the hospital is “clear proof of the failure to protect Iraqi lives, and it is time to put an end to this catastrophic failure.”
The BBC reports, “The coronavirus pandemic has severely strained Iraq’s health service, already suffering from years of war, neglect and corruption.”
Under-investment in this war-ravaged nation and years of endless corruption – and external intrigues – all equates to an infrastructure in a terrible state. The health care system was already in need of an overhaul long before the coronavirus crisis hit Iraq. Therefore, with the number of coronavirus patients increasing, along with two horrendous incidents leading to the enormous loss of life, this sums up much of modern-day Iraq.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-57814954
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