This is the moment fireworks used during a band's performance at a nightclub in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, set the stage ceiling on fire. What followed was tragic.
In the morning, it was learned that over 50 people lost their lives and more than 150 others were injured in the fire that engulfed the entire building, while the figures changed throughout the day.
The incident occurred in the early hours of Sunday morning at the club called "Pulse" in the eastern city of North Macedonia, at a time when it is believed that there were nearly 1,500 customers in the discotheque.
According to a report by the director of the Kocani Hospital, Dr. Kristina Serafimovska, the victims are aged between 14 and 25 and come from the cities of Skopje, Shtip, Kocani and Probishtip.
The hospital official added that 70 patients with burns and carbon monoxide poisoning were transported to the hospital, while some of them died during admission.
The injured were taken to hospital centers in Kocani, Stip and Skopje.
By midday on Sunday, at least 18 of the injured were in critical condition.
The event has raised the neighboring state to its feet, which has urgently engaged all institutional capacities, while by noon there was still no report on the identity of the unfortunate people who lost their lives in the fire.
During the day, local authorities published lists in local media with the names of the injured and the hospitals where they were being treated, as well as three contact telephone numbers for psychological assistance.
In a public statement, the Minister of Internal Affairs, Pance Toshkovski, said that, according to initial suspicions, the fire occurred as a result of pyrotechnic devices used for lighting effects in the club.
According to local authorities, due to the easily flammable materials, the fire immediately took on large proportions, creating thick smoke in the discotheque.
Amateur videos of the first moments of the fire made the rounds on social media, like this footage where, as the flames advance, one of the members of the music group DNA asks customers to come outside.
The Public Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of North Macedonia announced that all competent services, including a prosecutor from the Kocani Public Prosecutor's Office, are on the ground, where they have launched an investigation into the incident. According to preliminary data, he had been operating without a license since March last year. (A2 Televizion)
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