Fire at Chilean nursing home kills 16 residents
A fire at a nursing home in southern Chile killed at least 16 elderly residents on Friday night, authorities say, while ten others were evacuated.
At least 16 elderly residents died after a fire broke out at the El Edén nursing home in Pitrufquén, southern Chile, around 640km south of Santiago, authorities have confirmed. Ten other residents were evacuated safely.
The blaze started at around 22:30 local time on Friday and was not fully extinguished until Saturday morning. Prosecutor Jorge Granada, who is leading the investigation, said the cause of the fire remains unclear at this stage.
On Saturday, firefighters continued clearing debris and removing sections of collapsed corrugated metal roofing at the site, while police cordoned off the area for safety reasons.
President orders review
Chilean President José Antonio Kast said he had ordered a nationwide review of conditions at nursing homes. He pledged full cooperation with the justice system to determine what happened, identify any failures in oversight or prevention, and establish what warnings were issued and how they were handled.
Kast said it was essential to establish the truth so that corrective measures could be taken to prevent a similar tragedy from happening again.
Local mayor Jacqueline Romero said the tragedy had brought great sorrow to the community and that officials were providing support to the affected families.
