Six people were killed in a fire at a retirement home in Milan early on Friday, according to firefighters, while “numerous” residents were hospitalized.
“Six persons were murdered, and several (others) hospitalized for smoke inhalation. Firefighters who swiftly evacuated the building saved dozens of individuals, according to a tweet from the fire department.
Two of the victims’ bodies were seen being removed from the three-story structure, which at the time of the incident was apparently home to 167 people, by an AFP photographer.
The fire brigade stated that the cause of the incident was not yet identified.
A silver mortuary van, several fire trucks, and more than ten ambulances could be seen outside the structure in the southern Italian city.
According to Milan’s fire chief Nicola Micele, 80 individuals were taken by ambulance to the hospital, including two who were in critical condition.
According to Italian media, 14 additional people are in critical condition.
According to the sources, the sixth fatality was a 73-year-old guy. Five of the victims were women between the ages of 69 and 87.
The fire “started in one room housing two female residents,” according to Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala, and both of the residents perished in the flames.
The four further victims perished from smoke inhalation despite the fact that it did not spread, not even to the adjacent rooms.
He said that the alarm was set off at 1:30 am (23:20 GMT) by a staff member.
Staff raised the alarm when they noticed the smoke, according to Fire Chief Micele, who spoke to Rai news.
Four teams of firefighters were sent out right away. In one area of the structure, they encountered flames in one room and very poor lighting in a passageway.
“They concentrated on extinguishing the fire before removing the visitors.
The evacuation was extremely challenging due to the smoke and the fact that some of the guests were unable to walk.
“By being carried out, almost one and at time,” mayor Sala claimed, was the only way to get the residents out of their homes.
The council was striving to rapidly find new retirement communities for the residents.
The privately run “Casa per Coniugi” provides care for those who are unable to care for themselves but do not require hospitalization.
AFP