MADRID: At least 13 people were reportedly killed with fears that the death toll might rise when a devastating fire engulfed a nightclub in the city of Murcia, southeastern Spain, early Sunday morning, as rescue workers continue their search through the debris. The fire broke out in the two-storey “Teatre” nightclub, also known as “Fonda Milagros,” in the early hours of the morning.
Emergency services, communicating updates through the platform X (formerly known as Twitter), reported that firefighters were tirelessly working at the scene, not ruling out the possibility of finding more victims under the wreckage.
Jose Ballesta, the mayor of Murcia, described the situation as “extremely serious,” confirming that the fire started at approximately 6:00 am local time (0400 GMT). Ballesta expressed the complexity of the task at hand, stating that there were still bodies to be recovered amid the risk of structural collapse.
Firefighters, swiftly dispatched to the scene at 7:00 am, managed to contain the fire by 8:00 am. Photos released by emergency services depicted fire trucks spraying water on the blackened facade of the club, while thick smoke billowed from the building’s roof.
Birthday Party at Murcia Nightclub
According to reports, a birthday party was being celebrated at the club on Saturday night. The fire is believed to have originated on the first floor of the nightclub, which has both ground and first floors, according to Diego Seral, the national police spokesman, speaking to radio Onda Regional de Murcia.
Forensic and judicial police experts have been deployed to investigate the cause of the fire, as announced by the national police service on X.
In the wake of this tragedy, more than 40 firefighters and 12 emergency vehicles remain at the scene, as authorities diligently comb through the site for any remaining survivors and conduct investigations.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez expressed solidarity, extending his condolences to the victims’ families affected by the tragic fire in the Murcia nightclub. The city’s town hall conveyed deep regret over the accident, offering condolences and setting up a reception base for the relatives of the victims.
The incident in Murcia painfully recalls previous nightclub disasters in Spain, including the collapse of a floor in a Tenerife nightclub in 2017, which injured 40 people from various countries, and a nightclub fire in Zaragoza in 1990, claiming the lives of 43 people.
