In the Bolu highlands of Turkey, a fire at the Grand Kartal Hotel claimed 66 lives and injured 51 more. When the fire started early on Tuesday, several of the guests fled in fear by jumping out of windows. As people attempted to escape using bed sheets, emergency personnel surrounded the property.
According to a Reuters story, 66 people were killed in a horrific fire at a ski resort hotel in Turkey's Bolu mountains on Tuesday, which also forced numerous visitors to jump out of windows in a last-ditch effort to escape.51 more people were hurt in the fire at the Kartalkaya resort in northwest Turkey, according to Health Minister Kemal Memisoglu.
The 11-story Grand Kartal Hotel's restaurant level was where the fire began, at around 3:30 a.m. (0030 GMT).
Visitors knotted white bed linens together as they tried to escape from windows on the top floors, while emergency personnel encircled the burning hotel.
There were 238 registered guests staying at the 161-room hotel when the fire started.
"We are in deep pain," said Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, expressing his profound sadness. Unfortunately, the fire that started at this hotel has claimed 66 lives. It is thought that the fire began in the restaurant part of the hotel, but it spread quickly, making it impossible for people to evacuate.
As the fire spread throughout the building, at least two victims perished after fleeing in terror. According to Governor Abdulaziz Aydin, the deaths happened because the visitors were unable to flee because of the severe flames and smoke.
Necmi Kepcetutan, a hotel guest and ski instructor, remembered waking up to the fire and assisting about 20 people in fleeing. According to him, there was so much smoke in the hotel that it was almost hard for visitors to locate the fire escape. Some of my students are inaccessible to me. "I hope they're doing okay," Kepcetutan said to NTV.
The hotel's fire alarm system did not sound, according to third-floor guest Atakan Yelkovan. "The burning was detected by my wife. He claimed that the alarm had not gone off. He attempted to proceed downstairs with the other guests, but the flames barred their path. The arrival of firefighting crews took around an hour. "Screaming was coming from people on the higher stories. Sheets were draped down. A few attempted to leap," Yelkovan recalled.
The hotel's wooden exterior cladding is the center of investigators' attention since it may have aided in the fire's quick spread. Authorities were only able to act from the front and sides of the hotel due to its partial construction on a cliff, which made firefighting more difficult.
Six prosecutors have been assigned by the Turkish government to oversee an inquiry into the origin of the fire. According to Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, the hotel was last examined in 2021 and 2024, and no fire safety concerns were found.
With the words, "Unfortunately, we received very sad news this morning from Bolu, Kartalkaya," President Recep Tayyip Erdogan offered his sympathies. A hotel fire claimed the lives of our brothers and sisters and injured others. He promised that every effort would be made to thoroughly look into the situation and bring those involved to justice.
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