11 newborn infants died last night in a fire at a Baghdad hospital, according to reports by the Health Ministry of Iraq.
According to the ministry spokesman, Ahmed A-Rudeini, the fire was caused by a malfunction in the electrical system of the maternity department of the Yarmouk hospital in the west of the capital.
After the fire broke out the authorities swiftly surrounded the hospital and prevented journalists from approaching. An independent news agency in Baghdad, Mada Press, reported that 29 women and seven babies were transferred from the maternity ward where the fire broke out to another hospital.
Fires caused by electrical defects occur frequently in Baghdad as a result of the constant neglect of infrastructure development in the city.
Additionally, in many places there are no emergency fire escapes and this increases the danger in the case of a fire. Many of the building companies also do not use raw materials which comply with fire safety standards.