Eight dead in hospital fire in Iran

Eight people have died in a fire at a hospital in Iran, according to media reports.

The fire broke out in a hospital in the city of Rasht near the Caspian Sea in the north of the country, the state news agency IRNA reported on Tuesday.

According to initial findings, the dead were patients in an intensive care unit. Dozens of firefighters were deployed, as the head of the emergency services in the city said in an interview with state television.

The cause of the fire is being investigated. Around 140 patients had been rescued, the report said. There was concern that there could be more victims.

Details are awaited.