A fire at a boarding house for retirees on Tuesday in the northeastern Bosnian town of Tuzla left at least 10 people dead, an official and Bosnian media said.
According to local reports, at least 10 people were killed when the fire erupted on one of the higher floors of the building, and some 20 people have been hospitalised so far, but many more people are likely injured.
Prime Minister Nermin Nikšić described the fire as “a disaster of enormous proportions,” while a spokesperson for the Tuzla University clinical centre, said several people were being treated for carbon monoxide poisoning, three of whom were in intensive care, according to local media reports.
Cantonal leader Irfan Halilagic confirmed in a comment to local press that there have been fatalities and that authorities were “now looking for where to accommodate the residents.”
Media images from the scene showed a blaze on one of the facility’s floors as firefighters worked to evacuate the building and contain the blaze.
Officials at the nursing home said that the fire erupted on its seventh floor around 8.45 pm local time
One resident, Ruza Kajic, who lives on the third floor, said she had gone to bed when she heard “popping sounds” and saw flames falling from upper floors.
“Everything started breaking; I don’t know if my windows are in one piece,” Kajic told Avaz TV. “I rushed out.”
According to state radio BHRT, Türeljko Komšić, chairman of Bosnia-Herzegovina’s tripartite presidency, sent condolences to the relatives of the dead and the injured.
While the cause of the fire remains unknown, Bosnian officials said an investigation will be carried out as soon as conditions are safe.