Bride loses entire family when fire breaks out at wedding during first dance

30 September 2023 , 12:06

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Building materials drop from the ceiling as a fire tears through a wedding reception in Iraq (Image: Twitter)

A newlywed lost her three brothers and her husband's mum after her wedding venue became an inferno during her first dance as a married woman.

Christian newlyweds Haneen and Ravan were enjoying their slow dance during their big day in Qaraqosh, a town close to Mosul when tragedy struck. Footage has now emerged showing panicked guests scrambling to escape and yelling for their loved ones as they sprinted towards the exits. The entire room glows red as the flames trickle up the walls and construction materials fall from the ceiling.

Initial reports suggested the couple were dead, but it emerged that they had managed to dodge the flames through the kitchen. But more than 100 of their beloved guests perished in the fire. Among the fatalities were the bride's three brothers, uncles and young cousins. The groom's mother also died.

Friend of the couple Jamil al-Jamil said: "The crushing blow of losing so many family members far outweighs the 'minor burns' they suffered in the fire. The bride lost her whole family - three brothers, all of her uncles and her young cousins. The groom lost his mother."

Authorities said that flammable building materials also contributed to the latest disaster to hit Iraq's dwindling Christian minority. In the fire's chaotic aftermath, officials offered conflicting death tolls and security officials said they detained staff at the wedding hall as part of their investigation.

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The chandelier caught on fire (Twitter)

The fire happened in the Hamdaniya area of Iraq's Nineveh province. That is a predominantly Christian area just outside the city of Mosul, some 205 miles north west of Baghdad. There was no official word on the cause of the blaze but the Kurdish television news channel Rudaw aired footage showing pyrotechnics shooting flames up from the floor and setting a chandelier on fire.

After the blaze, charred metal and debris could be seen as people walked through the hall. Survivors arrived at local hospitals in bandages, receiving oxygen, as their families milled through hallways and outside as workers organised more oxygen cylinders. Some of those burned included children.Ambulance sirens wailed for hours after the fire as paramedics brought out the injured.

A view from outside the wedding hall

Other footage shown on other local television networks appeared to show the bride and groom on the dance floor when the fire began on Tuesday night, stunned by the sight of the burning debris. It was not immediately clear if they were among those hurt. "There were about to do a slow dance and then they lit up this thing for the dance which caught fire," one injured woman told Rudaw from a hospital trolley.

Another man injured in the fire told Rudaw that the blaze started as the couple prepared for their slow dance. "They lit up fireworks," he said. "It hit the ceiling, which caught fire. The entire hall was on fire in seconds."

Entire families were lost in the blaze (AFP via Getty Images)

Extravagant wedding ceremonies are common in Iraq, like many countries in the Middle East. Families often invite hundreds of relatives and members of the broader community, spending heavily on spectacular ceremonies with elaborately decorated halls, music and entertainers, often including pyrotechnics.

Casualty figures fluctuated in the hours after the incident. An initial Health Ministry statement, carried by the state-run Iraqi News Agency, said the blaze killed over 100 people and injured 150. Health officials in Nineveh province put the death toll at 114.

A Health Ministry official, speaking to The Associated Press on Wednesday, put the death toll at 92, with 101 people still receiving medical treatment. The death toll is expected to rise as some are in critical condition," he said.

Ryan Fahey