An emergency worker can be seen at the site of a deadly fire at a wedding celebration in Iraq's Nineveh province, on September 27.
An emergency worker can be seen at the site of a deadly fire at a wedding celebration in Iraq's Nineveh province, on September 27.
Khalid Al-Mousily/Reuters
CNN  — 

A fire at a wedding in northern Iraq has killed at least 100 people and injured 150 others, according to the Iraqi state news agency INA citing local authorities.

The disaster in the Hamdaniya district of northeast Nineveh governorate, was set off by fireworks, candles, and other materials used during the wedding celebration, the Iraqi Civil Defense said.

Nineveh governor Najm Al-Jubouri told the Iraqi state news agency INA that the injured were transferred to hospitals in Nineveh and the Kurdistan region.

“There is no final count of the deceased and injured yet,” Al-Jubouri said, according to INA.

Videos from the scene show thick smoke billowing out of the Al Haytham Wedding Hall while crowds and ambulances gather outside.

A wedding guest told local media that the bride and groom were safe but devastated.

People gather outside a hospital, where survivors are being treated.
People gather outside a hospital, where survivors are being treated.
Khalid Al-Mousily/Reuters
Locals can be seen walking through the debris of the wedding hall.
Locals can be seen walking through the debris of the wedding hall.
Khalid Al-Mousily/Reuters

“The bride and groom are fine. I was just with them now, but their condition is devastating due to what happened to people here,” the guest told private Iraqi channel Alawla TV.

The wedding hall where the fire broke out was covered with highly flammable Ecobond panels that violated safety instructions requirements, according to the Iraqi Civil Defense, ANI reported.

“The fire led to the collapse of parts of the hall as a result of the use of highly flammable, low-cost building materials that collapse within minutes when fire breaks out,” the Civil Defense statement said.

Iraqi officials walk at the site of a fire that tore through a wedding celebration.
Iraqi officials walk at the site of a fire that tore through a wedding celebration.
Khalid Al-Mousily/Reuters

Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani has instructed his cabinet to assist those affected by the fire, according to a statement from his office.

The Iraqi leader has been in touch with the Nineveh governor by telephone about the incident and ordered a full mobilization to aid the victims, according to his office and INA.

The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq expressed its condolences to family members of those killed and injured Tuesday, calling the incident “an immense tragedy.”

“Shocked and pained by the horrible loss of life and injuries in the fire,” the mission said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The Iraqi government issued a three-day national mourning period following the blaze.

CNN’s Aqeel Najim contributed reporting from Baghdad.