At least seven people died when a fire tore through a nightclub on the outskirts of the Spanish city of Murcia, officials said Sunday.
The blaze broke out at the Teatre nightclub in Atalayas, the southeastern city’s emergency services said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Clouds of smoke could be seen rising from the venue in images posted to X by the city’s fire department, while others showed the building’s blackened facade. The fire had also destroyed part of the roof.
The department said that 40 firefighters and 12 vehicles had been deployed to tackle the blaze which broke out in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Confirming that at least 7 people had died on his own X feed, the city’s Mayor José Ballesta said that emergency services were continuing to work to establish the cause of the blaze.
Four people have been treated in hospital for smoke inhalation, according to Reuters.
However, the Murcia region’s emergency coordination center warned in a post on X that the number of fatalities could rise.
In a separate post, Ballesta announced that a three day mourning period would be held for the dead. He also offered “strength and encouragement,” to the victims families.
NBC News has reached out to Teatre Murcia for comment.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
