A fire broke out in the middle of the night in a luxury hotel in a Turkish ski resort on Tuesday. At least 66 people lost their lives and 51 others were injured, according to Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya who visited the scene. According to the minister, “the fire is now under control and cooling operations” are continuing. Absence of alarm, exterior wooden cladding, difficult intervention by firefighters… We take stock of this tragedy.
What exactly happened?
The fire broke out “at 3:27 a.m. (12:27 a.m. French time)”, he confirmed, adding that 238 guests were registered at the twelve-story luxury establishment, Grand Kartal, located in Kartalkaya. , ski resort 170 km east of Ankara, in central Turkey. The flames quickly spread to the rest of the building due to the exterior wooden cladding, reported Turkish media whose images showed large flames escaping from upper windows and the roof, as well as plumes of black smoke.
The images taken by drone bear witness to the devastation in the roof and in the upper floors of the establishment, installed at the top of a cliff to have a panoramic view, which complicated the intervention of the 428 firefighters mobilized and arrived on the scene at 4:15 a.m., said the Minister of the Interior.
How to explain this fire?
The cause of the disaster is not yet known but already controversy and anger are growing among survivors who denounce negligence. Hotel employees helped evacuate guests, but witnesses and media on site denounce the absence of alarms and smoke detectors. “No alarm went off, no smoke detector or emergency staircase even though there was smoke up to the tenth floor,” a crying fifty-year-old, who had been with his family since Sunday, denounced on television in the establishment.
-“People were calling for help, asking for blankets so they could get out through the windows,” testified Baris Salgur, an employee at a nearby hotel. “We brought them what we found, ropes, pillows, and even a sofa… When the flames approached them, some threw themselves into the void.” According to the private television channel NTV, at least three people died jumping out of windows.
What is the legal outcome?
Four people, including the hotel owner, were arrested and taken into custody on Tuesday, Justice Minister Yimlaz Tunc announced. The Minister of Justice Yilmaz Tunc, who visited the site, announced the opening of an investigation entrusted to “six prosecutors” and the formation of a committee of experts to support them. The Minister of the Interior promised that “all measures will be taken if the investigation shows that there has been negligence or that mistakes have been made”. In front of his AKP party, meeting in congress, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also assured that “everything will be done to shed light on all aspects of the tragedy and to hold those responsible to account”.
