Horrific pictures

Dead in hotel fire in Turkish ski resort

At least ten people have died in a hotel fire in north-western Turkey.

(Bild: AP/IHA)

At least ten people have died in a hotel fire at a ski resort in northwest Turkey. 32 others were injured, as Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on X.

According to the state news agency Anadolu, the fire broke out on Tuesday night. The cause was initially unclear. 30 fire engines and 28 rescue vehicles were sent to the scene in Bolu province, Ali Yerlikaya announced. 267 people were deployed.

Pictures showed the roof and upper floors of the hotel in the Kartalkaya ski resort on fire. The fire was reported at 3.27 am. It broke out in the hotel's restaurant and spread throughout the building.

Here you can see footage of the fire.

Hotel guests jumped in panic
The Turkish Interior Minister expressed his condolences to the families of the ten fatalities and wished the 32 injured a speedy recovery. "Two of the dead jumped in panic. One was a hotel employee, the other a guest," said the governor of Bolu, Abdülaziz Aydin. Other fatalities are still being identified. 

The burning hotel in the ski resort

(Bild: AFP/Demiroren News Agency)

"The burning hotel is the oldest hotel here. It is mainly made of wood," said the mayor of Bolu, Tanju Özcan. The emergency services are trying to prevent the fire from spreading to the fuel tanks. There were 234 guests in the hotel. Some of them tried to escape outside by hanging bed sheets out of the window. The mayor stated that he did not know if the hotel had a fire escape.

There is speculation on X as to whether or not the hotel has a fire escape.

"The hotel could collapse at any moment," fears a Turkish reporter. The location and strong winds would contribute to this. The guests have already been evacuated. A team is now investigating the cause of the fire. 

The hotel was opened in 1978. Before that, there were no roads, water or electricity in the region.