A fire in a hostel in a suburb of New Zealand’s capital Wellington killed several people overnight. It is not yet clear why the fire broke out.
At least six people have been killed in a fire at a hostel in a suburb of Wellington, New Zealand. It is still unclear how many residents were in the building at the time of the accident. The number of victims could therefore increase.
The fire broke out in the multi-storey hostel just after midnight. A large contingent of firefighters responded to fight the flames. According to the fire department, more than 50 people were rescued from the building. Several people had to be taken to hospitals, at least two of whom are in critical condition.
Many residents lived permanently in the hostel with around 90 rooms, as the dpa news agency reported. This also included older people. Several people were still missing in the morning because the hostel could not be entered for security reasons.
The “worst nightmare”
The chief of the local fire brigade, Nick Pyatt, described the fire as the “worst nightmare” and it couldn’t get any worse. “Our thoughts are with the families of those who died and with our responders who bravely saved the people they could save and tried to save those they couldn’t,” Pyatt said.
New Zealand’s Prime Minister Chris Hipkins also spoke of an “absolute tragedy” and “terrible situation”. He announced a series of investigations to clarify what happened and why it happened. But right now the focus is on dealing with the situation.
Even after hours of extinguishing work, the hostel could not be entered for the time being.
Apparently none sprinkler systems inside the building
How the fire in the hostel in the suburb of Newton broke out is still unclear. The AP news agency, citing rescue workers, reported that there were no sprinkler systems in the building. Prime Minister Hipkins said that it is not yet mandatory to retrofit such systems in older buildings.
Residents also told the media that the fire alarm went off regularly in the hostel, which may have led to some residents not immediately taking the alarm seriously.