Saudi Arabia: At least 31 killed in major fire at Jazan General Hospital

Saudi Arabia hospital fire — Members of the Saudi civil defence work at Jazan General Hospital following a pre-dawn fire in the port city of Jazan, Saudi Arabia Handout via Reuters

At least 31 people are thought to have been killed after a major fire broke out at a hospital in Jazan, Saudi Arabia. Around 107 others sustained injuries at the medical facility located in the south-west corner of the Kingdom.

It is unclear what caused the inferno at Jazan General Hospital, which started at about 2.30am local time (11:30pm GMT). Emergency workers were evacuating patients.

Saudi Arabia's Okaz newspaper reported that victims were being taken to nearby hospitals for treatment. The country's civil defence authorities put the death toll at 25.

Images from the tragedy showed some sections of the multi-storey hospital completely burnt. Besides the intensive care unit, buildings of obstetrics and gynaecology departments were badly affected.