Ecuadorians, Colombians and Nicaraguans among 13 dead in Murcia nightclub fire

The disco in Murcia frequented by Latin Americans, where 13 people died on Sunday in a violent fire and was ordered to close for a year, authorities in the city in southeastern Spain. In January 2022, the cessation of its activity was determined and in October “an execution order for the closure” of the facilities was issued, said Antonio Navarro, responsible for Urban Planning at the Murcia City Council.

The measure was enacted because the company that managed it only had a license for one nightclub, Teatre, but had carried out work to divide the space and open another, Fonda Milagros, where the deadly fire occurred, he detailed in a press conference.

LOOK: The birthday party that ended in tragedy for a Nicaraguan family in the Murcia fire

Asked why the closure of the well-known nightclub, which advertised its salsa, cumbia or reggaeton parties on social media, had not been completed, Navarro stated: “We will act with force to clarify all responsibilities for what happened until the last consequences, whatever it takes.”

Firefighter walks through the Teatre nightclub after a fire that left several people dead. (AFP). (FLYER/)

Among the thirteen victims of the fire, which broke out in Fonda Milagros around 6am on Sunday, there is Colombians, Nicaraguans, Ecuadorians and Spanishthe Government delegate in Murcia, Francisco Jiménez, told journalists.

After releasing several versions found during the day about people still missing, the Municipal Council of Murcia announced on Monday afternoon that “the last people” who were reported missing seemed “in good condition”.

Given the accusations made against it, the club stated, in the voice of its lawyer Francisco Adán, that He received no notification that “there was no license.”

“We are collaborating with the competent authorities, in whom we fully trust to clarify the facts.”“, wrote the Fonda Milagros on your Instagram account.

Relatives of those who died in the Murcia fire. (EFE/ Marcial Guillén).

“We are going to die”

The fire that affected the two adjacent nightclubs Theater and Goldin this nightlife area on the outskirts of Murciawould have started on the second floor of the facilities, the regional president of MurciaFernando López Miras.

The Scientific Police finally began the investigation at the scene of the accident on Monday afternoon, according to the Municipal Council of Murciainvestigations that were postponed due to the high temperatures of the rubble and the risk of collapse.

The family members’ pain was immense.

In the image Jairo, father of a woman who disappeared in the nightclub fire in Murcia. (EFE/ Marcial Guillén).

“Mommy, I love you, we’re going to die,” a young woman was heard saying in a message Audio which came out at 6:06 am and which was shown by a man, Jairo, who identified himself as the father of the 28-year-old girl. According to the Ecuadorian press, the woman was from that country.

A young nightclub goer told El País that the reserved area on the second floor, the likely epicenter of the fire where a birthday was being celebrated, was like “a labyrinth” and that the area could only be entered or exited via a single staircase.

López Miras said he found “desolation” and “shock” in the families of the victims he met, adding that “what they need to ease their pain a little is that the family member or friend can be identified and they can give them rest.” .” ”.

In this photograph provided by the Murcia Fire Department on October 1, 2023, an attempt is made to extinguish a fire in a nightclub area. (AFP). (FLYER/)

Mourning and minute of silence

Six of the 13 deceased were identified by fingerprints, according to police, and the rest will have to be identified through fingerprint tests. DNA.

The regional government of Murcia He decreed three days of mourning and the city hall organized a minute of silence in a central city square at noon on Monday.

“We are moved (…) by the expressions of affection we have received from all over the world”, said the mayor of Murcia, José Ballesta, to journalists after the tribute.

On Sunday, King Felipe VI expressed his “pain and dismay” at the tragedy.

In 1990, 43 people died in a fire at a nightclub in Zaragoza, in the northeast of the country, but the worst tragedy of its kind occurred in December 1983, at the Alcalá 20 nightclub, in Madrid, where 81 people died.

Source: Elcomercio