The fire is said to have originated on two floors of the building’s basement, used to store the night space located on the ground floor and currently undergoing renovation.
At least 29 people died this Tuesday and several others were injured, three of them seriously, in a fire that broke out in a nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey, according to CNN Turk, citing local administration sources.
A large number of firefighters are already in the Gayrettepe neighborhood, in the city center, where the fire occurred, to try to save people trapped in the building where the nightlife space is located.
According to NTV television, the fire originated on two basement floors of the 16-storey building, used to store the nightclub, located on the ground floor and undergoing renovation.
Quoted by Hurriyet, the governor of Istanbul, Davut Gul, stated that the victims were workers at the nightclub, which was closed due to Ramadan.
On X, the Istanbul Fire Department published a video of the scene of the incident, after the fire had been extinguished.
Also on social network X, the Minister of Justice, Yilmaz Tunc, announced that five arrest warrants had been issued.
“Crime scene investigation and evidence collection activities are ongoing, and a team of three experts specialized in occupational safety and fire safety continues its work on the cause of the fire,” Tunc wrote.
“An arrest warrant was issued for a total of five suspects, including three people responsible for the workplace, the responsible director and one person responsible for renewal,” he added.
