Family members have already begun burying more than 100 people who tragically died in an inferno that struck during a wedding in Iraq.
Young newlyweds Haneen and Revan are feared killed along with at least 110 of their wedding guests after the fire, believed to have been started by fireworks, ripped through the grand hall in the northern town of Qaraqosh, near Mosul, on Tuesday evening.
Hundreds of mourners gathered at Resurrection Cemetery, just over a mile north of the city, to say goodbye to many of the fire’s victims.
Many carried pictures of their deceased loved ones, including young children, as a procession carrying 42 coffins marched slowly through the cemetery, which is in a predominantly Christian part of Iraq.
Others were seen carrying representations of Jesus Christ during the procession.
Immaculate Church, a local congregation in the city, said in a Facebook post that the funeral procession took place today at 4 p.m. local time.
The mass burial appeared to be open to all, and the church wrote in the post: “We ask the families of the victims to deliver the bodies to the cemetery at 3:30 p.m.”
Mourners carry the coffin of a victim of the deadly wedding reception fire during the funeral in Hamdaniya, Iraq, on Wednesday
Entire families are said to have died in the devastating fire
At the funeral, 42 coffins were taken to Resurrection Cemetery, just over a mile north of the city
The Resurrection Cemetery is located about a mile north of Qaraqosh
Workers are still searching for the embers of the burned building
Unbeknownst to newlyweds Haneen and Revan, this would be their last picture together before a raging inferno swept across their Christian wedding in Iraq today
Civil defense officials quoted by the Iraqi News Agency described the outside of the wedding hall as being decorated with highly flammable paneling, which is illegal in the country
The video purportedly shows the bride and groom slow dancing in the hall just before fire engulfed the large hall in the Christian city that survived ISIS occupation.
Hanneen, wearing a large white wedding dress, turns in horror to see flames quickly climbing the walls before burning material falls from the roof.
Chaos ensues, up to 900 guests rush to the exits in panic, while the hall bursts into flames within seconds and fills with toxic smoke. Survivors said many remained trapped in the burning building because they could not see through the black smoke.
According to health authorities, the bride and groom were among more than 100 people who died in the deadly fire, while 150 others were injured – 50 of them critically. However, there are conflicting reports about her health. Some others say the couple were injured rather than killed in the fire.
The deputy governor of Nineveh province, Hassan al-Allaf, said 113 people had been confirmed dead, while the head of the province’s Red Crescent branch said the death toll was not yet final but was “more as hundreds injured and dozens dead.”
“I lost my daughter, her husband and their three-year-old child. They were all burned. “My heart is burning,” said a woman outside the mortuary, where bodies lay outside in bags while vehicles came to pick up those identified.
This picture shows the wedding moments before the fire
A firefighter checks damage at an event hall in Qaraqosh, also known as Hamdaniyah, after a fire broke out during a wedding on Wednesday, killing at least 100 people
Burnt items that belonged to the guests at the wedding continue to be found
One victim is in hospital after a fatal fire at a wedding reception in Hamdaniya district on Wednesday
A man named Youssef was standing nearby with burns on his hands and face. He said he couldn’t see anything when the fire broke out and the power went out. He had grabbed his three-year-old grandson and was able to get out.
But his wife, Bashra Mansour, in her mid-50s, didn’t make it. She fell in the chaos and died.
Hundreds of wedding guests, including many children, were taken to hospital with severe burns to their bodies and many were fighting for their lives.
Wedding guest Rania Waad, who sustained a burn on her hand, said that while Haneen and Revan were “slow dancing, the fireworks started climbing to the ceiling and the whole hall burst into flames.”
“We couldn’t see anything,” said the 17-year-old, holding back sobs. “We were suffocated, we didn’t know how to get out.”
Other wedding guests also said the fire was caused by fireworks set off during the first dance.
A man injured in the fire said from his hospital bed: “They lit fireworks.” It hit the ceiling, which caught fire. “The entire hall was on fire within seconds.”
Family members are overcome with grief during the funeral of victims of the deadly fire at a cemetery in Hamdanya, Iraq, on Wednesday
According to health authorities, the bride and groom were among more than 100 people who died in the deadly fire, while 150 others were injured – 50 of them critically
Panicked guests ran from the burning building, but over 100 were trapped inside
Mourners are overcome with emotion at the funeral of the victims of Wednesday’s deadly wedding reception fire in Hamdaniya
Rana Yakoub, 27, a victim of the fire, is pictured after a wedding party disaster in Mosul’s Hamdaniya district on Wednesday
A victim of the deadly fire at a wedding reception lies in a hospital in Erbil, Iraq, on Wednesday
A victim of the deadly fire at a wedding reception lies in a hospital in Erbil, Iraq, on Wednesday
A child victim of the deadly wedding reception fire remains in a hospital in Erbil, Iraq, on Wednesday
Firefighters work at the scene of a deadly fire in Hamdaniya district of Nineveh province in Iraq on Wednesday
Witnesses said the wedding hall caught fire during the couple’s first dance at around 10.45pm local time (8.45pm UK time).
The video shows wedding guests dancing together before the bride and groom enter the dance floor.
Shocking footage shows Haneen leaning her head against Revan as he holds her waist as they share their first dance. But within minutes the wedding turned into a nightmare as the fire broke out, sending burning fragments onto the ground around them.
Panicked guests fled the burning building, but over 100 were trapped inside and died from burns and smoke inhalation.
“We saw the fire pulsating and coming from the hall. “Those who made it got out, and those who didn’t made it got stuck,” said Imad Yohana, a 34-year-old who escaped the inferno.
There were chaotic scenes outside the building, with screaming guests calling for help from paramedics who quickly arrived on the scene.
Injured wedding guests were later seen lying in hospital beds with bandages covering the burns they sustained in the horrific fire.
Ahmed Dubardani, a provincial health official, said: “Most of them had complete burns and some others had 50 to 60 percent of their bodies burned.”
“It’s not good at all.” Most of them weren’t in good condition.”
After the fire, all that was visible was charred metal and debris as emergency crews searched the scene of utter devastation.
Grief overwhelmed the mourners as they said goodbye to their deceased loved ones
A woman cries during the funeral of a victim of the deadly fire during wedding celebrations on Wednesday
A woman cries during the funeral of a victim of the deadly fire during wedding celebrations on Wednesday
Mourners donned black clothing to say goodbye to their loved ones
Hundreds of people attend the funeral of the victims of the deadly wedding reception fire in Hamdanya, Iraq, on Wednesday
Hundreds of people attend the funeral of the victims of the deadly wedding reception fire in Hamdanya, Iraq, on Wednesday
Iraqi security officials inspect the site of the fire in Qaraqosh, near Mosul, Iraq, on Wednesday
This picture shows the burned-out interior of an event hall in Qaraqosh, where the fire broke out during the wedding on Wednesday
An injured child lies on a hospital bed after a fire broke out at a wedding reception in the northern province of Nineveh
An injured man lies on a hospital bed after a fire broke out at the wedding ceremony, killing at least 100 people
Charred remains of chairs can be seen in the gutted wedding hall on Wednesday
People gather at the site of a deadly fire on Wednesday
The video shows tables covered with white cloths under chandeliers in the hall before the wedding ceremony turned into a nightmare
Firefighters check the damage at an event hall in Qaraqosh after a fire broke out at a wedding on Wednesday
An injured child lies on a hospital bed after a fire broke out at a wedding reception on Wednesday
An injured child lies on a hospital bed after a fire broke out at a wedding reception on Wednesday
People gather around a truck carrying body bags after a fire broke out during the wedding
People walk past an event hall in Qaraqosh where a fire broke out during a wedding on Wednesday
A view of the destroyed wedding hall in the northern Nineveh province of Mosul, Iraq, on Wednesday
People gather at the site of a deadly wedding reception fire, where the charred remains of the building were visible on Wednesday
While there is no official word on the cause of the fire, footage showed fireworks shooting from the floor of the event and setting a chandelier on fire, echoing statements from injured wedding guests.
The situation was made worse by the fact that the outside of the wedding hall was decorated with “highly flammable” paneling, which is illegal in Iraq, said civil defense officials, quoted by the Iraqi News Agency.
The danger is exacerbated by the “release of toxic gases associated with the combustion of the plastic panels,” it said.
“The fire caused some parts of the ceiling to collapse due to the use of highly flammable, low-cost construction materials,” the civil defense agency said. “Preliminary information” suggests that fireworks were responsible for the fire.
The Interior Ministry said it had issued four arrest warrants against the owners of the wedding hall, state media reported, and President Abdul Latif Rashid called for an investigation.
Three people who attended the wedding said the hall was ill-equipped to deal with the disaster, with no visible fire extinguishers, few exits and was covered in flammable material that reportedly burned “like gasoline.” The fire department arrived 30 minutes after the fire broke out, it said.
Most residents of Qaraqosh, which is predominantly Christian but also home to some members of Iraq’s Yazidi minority, fled the city when the Islamic State captured it in 2014. However, they returned after the group was evicted in 2017.
At Mar Youhanna Church, where the wedding service was held before the evening party, Deacon Hani al-Kasmousa said prayers for the dead would take place in the cemetery because there was not enough space in the church for so many mourners.
“Yesterday there was a wedding and happiness. Now we are preparing for her funeral,” he said, as new coffins were stacked in an alley near his church.
Father Rudi Saffar Khoury, a priest at the wedding, said it was unclear who was responsible for the fire.
“It could be a mistake by the organizers or hosts of the venue or maybe a technical error,” Khoury said. “It was literally a disaster.”
Survivors stand in the rubble of the hall that was destroyed by the inferno
A man walks through the gutted remains of the wedding hall where at least 100 people were killed on Wednesday
A view of the destroyed wedding hall in the northern Nineveh province of Mosul, Iraq, on Wednesday
Iraqi security forces inspect the site of a fire that broke out at a wedding hall in Hamdaniya in Iraq’s Nineveh province on Wednesday
Soldiers and emergency responders gather around ambulances carrying injured people after a fire broke out at a wedding hall
A fire at a wedding in a banquet hall in Hamdaniyah killed at least 100 people
Soldiers and emergency responders in front of the Hamdaniyah General Hospital in Bakhdida
Najim al-Jubouri, the provincial governor of Nineveh, said some of the injured had been taken to regional hospitals. He warned that there were no final casualty figures from the fire, suggesting the death toll could rise.
Anger is simmering in the area after it was revealed that the outside of the wedding hall was covered in the illegal paneling.
It was not immediately clear why Iraqi authorities allowed the hall’s paneling to be used, even though corruption and mismanagement remain widespread two decades after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.
While some types of cladding can be made from fire-resistant material, experts say the ones that caught fire in the wedding hall and elsewhere were not designed to meet stricter safety standards and were often installed on buildings without any breaks in place to slow the fire or stop possible fire.
These include the Grenfell fire in London in 2017, which killed 72 people, the largest fire death on British soil since World War II, and several high-rise fires in the United Arab Emirates.
Safety standards in Iraq’s construction sector are often flouted and the country, whose infrastructure is in poor condition after decades of conflict, is often the scene of deadly fires and accidents.
In July 2021, more than 60 people died in a fire in the Covid ward of a hospital in southern Iraq.
And in April of that year, exploding oxygen tanks sparked a fire at a Baghdad hospital also intended for Covid patients, killing more than 80 people.
Like many Christian towns in the Nineveh Plains northeast of Mosul, Qaraqosh was sacked by jihadists from the Islamic State group in 2014.
Qaraqosh and its churches were slowly rebuilt after the group’s fall in 2017, and Pope Francis visited the city in March 2021.