The cause of the fire is not yet known, more details will be provided by the police investigation.
A fire at the Kartalkaya ski resort in the Bolu region of northwestern Turkey has already killed 66 people, Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said. The number of injured rose to 51. TASR informs based on reports from Reuters and AFP.
“We are experiencing great pain. Unfortunately, we lost 66 lives in the fire that broke out in this hotel,” Yerlikaya told reporters from the scene of the tragedy, according to the AP agency.
According to the governor of the Bol region, more than 230 guests were accommodated in the 12-story hotel. Some of the victims died after jumping from the building in panic, the governor added. The Turkish Ministry of Health reported that one of the injured is in a serious condition.
The fire broke out at approximately 3:30 a.m. local time (1:30 a.m. CET) on the fourth floor in the hotel’s restaurant and quickly spread throughout the building. 30 fire engines and 28 ambulances responded to the scene. According to Türkiye Today, rescue workers tried to put out the fire for more than 10 hours.
