At least 41 dead and 14 injured when a Coptic church caught fire in Giza (Egypt)

Among the deceased there are several children and it is not ruled out that the death toll will increase

At least 41 people have died and 14 have been injured by a fire declared this Sunday in the Coptic church of Abu Seifein (or Saint Mercury) in the town of Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo, according to the Coptic Orthodox Church. in a statement that cites sources from the Ministry of Health.

According to the first investigations, the fire occurred during a religious service that welcomed hundreds of faithful, as a result of an electrical failure in an air conditioning unit installed on the second floor of the church, where there were several classrooms, according to informed the Ministry of the Interior.

The flames and smoke ended up leading to a human stampede, according to sources from the Ministry of the Interior quoted by the Egyptian newspaper 'Al Ahram'. The fire caused a dense smoke that was the main cause of death, according to Interior.

A spokesman for the Coptic Church has reported that there are children among the victims of the fire and has warned that the final balance of deaths could increase due to the seriousness of some of the injured.

The spokesman for the Ministry of Health, Hosam Abdel Ghaffar, explained that all hospitals in the governorates of Cairo and Giza are on emergency alert.

In total, 30 ambulances have been mobilized to transfer those affected to the Imbaba and Al Aguza hospitals. The spokesman explained that the first notice of the incident was received at 8:57 in the morning and that the first ambulance arrived at 8:59, two minutes later.

The fire has been quickly controlled and the firefighters have already completed the cooling operations, after which a team from the Egyptian Prosecutor's Office has entered what remains of the premises to determine the causes of the fire.

After a first examination, the Prosecutor's Office has reported that the preliminary investigation has concluded that the cause of the fire was a short circuit.

So far it is known that among the deceased is the priest of the church, Father Abdel Masí Bajit. It has also been reported that among those treated for the fire there are five civil protection workers.

The President of Egypt, Abdelfatá al Sisi, has already expressed his condolences on Sunday to the Pope of the Coptic Church, Tawadros II of Alexandria, to whom he has given all the necessary support from state institutions, according to the presidential spokesman, Basam Rady. Al Sisi has also ordered to give all the necessary assistance to the wounded.

The Egyptian Prime Minister, Mostafa Madbuli, has already visited the two hospitals where most of the victims have been received, accompanied by the Minister of Health, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar; the Minister for Social Solidarity, Nevine el Qabbaj, and the Minister for Local Development, Hisham Amna.

The Interior Minister, Mahmoud Tawfik, and the Egyptian Attorney General, Hamada el Sawi, have visited the scene of the incident to supervise the work of the emergency services.

Coptic Christians make up about 10 percent of Egypt's 103 million people. At the moment everything indicates that the fire was due to fortuitous causes, but in recent years numerous attacks have been perpetrated against this group.