At least 50 dead in nightclub fire in Northern Macedonia: flames engulf roof as revellers watch on

A fire at a discotheque in Kocani, northern Macedonia, where a concert was being held, killed 59 people on the night of Saturday March 15 to Sunday March 16, according to the latest figures from the Ministry of the Interior, while 155 people were hospitalized by midday Sunday.

The fire engulfed the Pulse Club nightclub in this town of around 30,000 inhabitants in the east of the country, some 100 km from the capital, Skopje, during a concert by DNK, a hip-hop group very popular in the country. The concert, which began at midnight, was attended by “around 1,500 people”, mainly young people, according to the official MIA agency.

According to our initial information, the fire broke out as a result of sparks from pyrotechnic devices used during the concert,” reported Interior Minister Pance Toskovski, who visited the scene of the tragedy on Sunday morning. Most likely, the sparks reached the ceiling, which is made of an easily flammable material, and in a very short time the fire spread throughout the nightclub, with thick smoke,” added the Minister, adding that arrest warrants had been issued for four people.

Videos posted on social networks and shot before the fire show stage jets, a type of indoor fireworks used during concerts. Other videos show huge flames coming out of a building, followed by emergency vehicles in front of the discotheque's flame-blackened entrance.

Among the victims, “35 have been identified. Thirty-one are from the towns of Kocani and Stip. The number of people hospitalized [on Sunday] at midday was 155,” said the Interior Minister. “Preparations are underway to transport those seriously injured in the Kocani fire to leading hospitals in several European countries,” reported Stojanche Angelov, head of the crisis center.

The victims whose bodies arrived at Kocani hospital ranged in age from 14 to 25, the hospital's director, Kristina Serafimovska, told a local media outlet. Among the injured, “70 patients arrived with burns and carbon monoxide poisoning”, she added. One of the DNK group's members, Vladimir Blazev, was burned in the face and was on life support on Sunday morning, his sister told local media.

“This is a difficult and very sad day for Macedonia,” Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski wrote on Facebook. The loss of so many young lives is irreparable, and the pain of families, loved ones and friends is immeasurable.”

Reactions from foreign leaders multiplied on Sunday, with several countries offering assistance. Bulgaria's Prime Minister, Rossen Jeliazkov, described the fire on Facebook as an “immense human tragedy” and offered his country's help in transporting and caring for the injured in facilities in Sofia and Varna. “I have ordered full preparation for their reception and the Bulgarian air force” is mobilized, he added.

Albania's Prime Minister, Edi Rama, also offered his help, declaring that Albania could “provide any assistance that may be required”. Greece, through its Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, also said it was ready to help “in these difficult times”.

The head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, said on X that she was “deeply saddened by the tragic fire that claimed the lives of too many young people in Kocani (...) The EU shares the grief and pain of the people of Northern Macedonia”.