A view of efforts to douse a fire that broke out at a police facility, in Ismailia, Egypt, October 2, 2023.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

A huge fire early Monday in a police headquarters in northeastern Egypt injured at least 25 people, officials said.

The blaze ripped through the multistory police headquarters in the Suez Canal province of Ismailia, two officials said.

At least 25 people, most of them police officers, were injured and taken to hospitals, they said. Most of the injured suffered burns and breathing difficulties.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media.

It was not immediately clear how many police were in the building at the time of the blaze, which severely damaged the building according to local media.

Videos circulated on social media showed flames and black smoke pouring from the building.

The cause of the blaze was not immediately known. The state-run MENA news agency said firefighters managed to put out the fire.

Safety standards and fire regulations are poorly enforced in Egypt and have been linked to many deaths.

In August 2022, a fire erupted in a packed Coptic Orthodox church during morning services in Cairo, killing 41 worshippers in one of the country’s deadliest fires in recent years.

There were more than 49,300 fires in Egypt in 2022 which resulted in 203 deaths and injuries to 855 people, according to the country’s official statistics agency. (AP) FZH