New Delhi: At least 41 people have been killed and 14 others injured in a fire at a Cairo church on Sunday, as reported by the news agency AP. The church, citing health officials for the casualties, said the fire started in the densely populated area of Imbaba, Abu Sefein Church. The cause of the fire was not immediately known. Police said that in the preliminary investigation, an electrical short-circuit is believed to be the cause of the fire.
The statement said that the fire started on Sunday morning when the meeting was going on. Fifteen fire tenders have been dispatched to the spot to douse the fire while the injured were taken to nearby hospitals through ambulances.
"We are in continuous contact with the local authorities and the Health Ministry," the head of the Coptic Church, Pope Tawadros II said, according to the church spokesperson, as reported by CNN.
On his Twitter, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said he is following up closely on the developments of the tragic incident at the church in the Al-Mounira area of Giza.
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“I directed all concerned state agencies and institutions to take all the required measures immediately to deal with the incident and its impacts and provide all forms of health care to the injured,” El-Sisi said.
“I offer my sincere condolences to the families of the innocent victims who went to be with their Lord in one of the houses in which he is worshipped,” the president added.