At least 51 people have been killed and more than 100 injured in a massive fire that broke out early this morning in a nightclub in North Macedonia’s eastern town of Kocani. As many as 1,500 were said to have been attending a concert by the band DNK, a hip-hop duo popular in the country. Interior Minister Pance Toskovski said that according to initial reports, the fire started from sparks caused by pyrotechnic devices. He told reporters that sparks then hit the ceiling made of highly flammable material, before the fire spread through the club. He said some arrests had been made.
Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski wrote in a statement on Facebook that the government is fully mobilised and will do everything necessary to deal with the consequences and determine the causes of this tragedy. He called it a difficult and very sad day for the country which had now lost so many young lives.
The hospital in Kocani initially reported 90 admissions, with many suffering severe burns. Some of the injured have since been transferred to hospitals in Skopje for further treatment.
