A bride and groom have shared their thoughts following the tragic loss of over 100 lives at their wedding.
A wedding is typically seen as the happiest day in a couple’s life, but for two newlyweds, it turned into an unimaginable tragedy.
Now, the bride, 18-year-old Haneen, and her 27-year-old groom, Revan, have addressed the horrifying incident.
Haneen and Revan were meant to be celebrating their love. However, by the end of the day, they had tragically lost 107 beloved individuals, including many close family members.
A large number of friends and family of the bride and groom lost their lives at the venue in Iraq’s Nineveh province.
The tragedy was caused by a massive, uncontrolled fire.
The blaze occurred at a well-known wedding hall in Qaraqosh, close to the city of Mosul, during a ceremony attended by over 900 guests.
Jamil al-Jamil, a friend of the couple, shared with AFP, according to BBC News: “The bride lost her entire family—three brothers, all of her uncles, and her young cousins.”
“The groom lost his mother,” he added.
The head of the Al-Hamdaniya Fire Incident Investigation Committee confirmed that at least 82 others were injured in the tragedy.
In an interview with Sky News, Revan attempted to clarify the cause of the fire, stating: “It could be a short circuit; I’m not sure. But the fire began in the ceiling. We felt the heat… When I heard the crackling, I looked up at the ceiling. Then the nylon ceiling started to melt.
“It happened in just seconds.”
He reported that there was a power outage just before the couple’s first dance, after which he observed flames spreading across the ceiling.
One of the injured, speaking to an Associated Press reporter from the hospital, recounted: “[The bride and groom] were about to do a slow dance, and then they lit this thing for the dance, which caught fire.”
Revan described the desperate moment when he had to rescue his wife, saying: “I kept dragging her and trying to get her out of the kitchen entrance. As people were fleeing, they were trampling on her.”
He also mentioned, “Her legs are injured.”
Authorities assert that the building contained flammable materials, contributing to the rapid spread of the fire.
It is also believed that the chaotic evacuation process exacerbated the loss of life.
Revan noted that there was only one fire extinguisher available, and it “didn’t work.”
Martin Idriss, 19, who was in the kitchen when the fire started, told the Daily Mail: “I thought there had been an explosion.”
“The flames were consuming the entire hall.”
Wedding guest Rania Waad, 17, who sustained burns to her hand, recounted that as the bride and groom “were slow dancing, the fireworks (flames) started to rise to the ceiling, and then the whole hall erupted in flames.”
“We couldn’t see anything. We were suffocating. We didn’t know how to escape,” she added.
In the aftermath of the fire, the hall was littered with charred metal and debris, creating a grim scene for anyone who entered.
Survivors, wrapped in bandages, made their way to local hospitals where they received essential oxygen support.
Meanwhile, families anxiously waited in hallways and outside as workers hurried to organize additional oxygen cylinders. The presence of injured children only deepened the tragedy.
The sound of ambulance sirens echoed for hours as paramedics worked tirelessly to transport the injured to safety.
In the wake of the fire, Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al Sudani stated on social media that he had reached out to the provincial governor of Nineveh, as well as the country’s home and health ministers, instructing them to “mobilize all efforts to provide relief to those affected by this unfortunate incident.”
Health Ministry spokesman Saif al Badr stated, according to Yahoo: “All efforts are being made to provide relief to those affected by this unfortunate accident.”
Initial reports indicated that the fire may have started due to a pyrotechnic accident; however, Revan insists it began in the ceiling.
According to the Daily Mail, civil defense authorities reported that the hall had been constructed with prefabricated panels that were “highly flammable and contravened safety standards.”
The situation was further exacerbated by the “release of toxic gases linked to the combustion of the panels,” which contained plastic.
Following the fire, fourteen individuals were arrested, including the hall’s owner and four people involved in igniting the fireworks, according to the BBC.
Some of those arrested have since been released.
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani has called for “the toughest punishments allowed by law for those responsible for negligence or failures that led to this tragic fire.”
According to the state-run Iraqi News Agency (INA), Interior Minister Abdul Amir al-Shammari stated: “Fireworks were the primary cause of the fire.” He also asserted that the fire “was accidental and 100% an act of God.”
According to the BBC, Mr. Shammari pointed out that the hall had a capacity of 500, but there were “twice the number” of people inside, and it was “devoid of emergency doors.”
He added: “The hall’s owner believed that a short circuit had ignited the fire, so he cut the electricity, which had a significant impact. This provoked chaos, panic, and a stampede.”
British fire safety expert Arnold Tarling told the BBC: “There should be ‘firebreaks’ in the ceiling and floor. Materials used should not be combustible, including wedding decorations.”
He further stated, “These types of fires are entirely avoidable. People bring fireworks to such events, but nobody ever considers the risks.”
Revan has also addressed the emotional toll of the tragedy, expressing: “Inside, we are dead. We are numb. We are dead inside.”
He concluded, “Our relatives, our friends, our loved ones are all gone.”
The couple has also confirmed that they will be leaving their hometown in the aftermath of the incident.
“That’s it, we can’t live here anymore. We can’t live here anymore. Every time we try to find some happiness, something tragic happens that destroys it. So, it’s best for us to leave,” Revan said.
He added, “On what should have been our wedding night… why did this happen? What did we do? Why did this happen?”
