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With fewer than 30,000 inhabitants, the small town of Kocani in North Macedonia has suffered a great loss on Sunday.
A fire in a nightclub left at least 59 people dead and 155 injured.
Vlatko Zdravkov was an eyewitness to the tragedy.
"I was there, I was witnessing all the situation, when the children and the dead were pulling out. What can I say to you? We are a small place (town). This tragedy, what has happened to us, will not recover the generations. Kocani is already a dead town. I have a relative’s son who died, my godfather’s son, my neighbor’s children from school… Me, personally, and we all are feeling like all our children have died."
The incident took place at Kocani's 'Pulse' nightclub, around 100 kilometres from the capital city of Macedonia, Skopje.
According to the local hospital, all the fatalities identified so far are aged between 14 and 24 years old.
More than 1,500 people were at the nightclub at the time of the incident.
Marija Taseva, a 19-year-old girl, was one of them; she says she barely made it out alive.
”The fire started and everyone started shouting to get out. 1,500 people can't get out that fast. Some even tried to get out through the toilet, to find some bars (on the windows), but some people suffocated there. Some people stayed in the disco and they couldn't get them out. I somehow managed, I fell down the stairs and they ran over me, trampled me. I barely stayed alive and could barely breathe. I got out at the end, but I lost my sister."
Local authorities confirmed that the fire started during a concert by the hip-hop group DNK, one of the most popular in the country.
Only one member of the band survived and is being treated in hospital.
During the show, some people in the nightclub used pyrotechnic effects, but the sparks spread quickly, coming in contact with the ceiling, which was made of inflammable material.
The nightclub was in a building that has previously been used as a carpet warehouse.
North Macedonia's Prime Minister, Hristijan Mickoski says that the club was operating under a falsified licence.
"At the moment, we have information that at the time of the disaster, the nightclub had a falsified licence issued in March 2024 for a bribe. It is a document for the work of a cabaret which was issued illegally with a legal stamp of the Economy Ministry and signed by the then officials of the same ministry. There are many questions there that the investigation should answer."
The interior minister, Pance Toskovski announced that four people have been arrested in connection with the fire, without providing further details.
Local media report that the owner of the nightclub is among those detained.
Officials from the Interior Ministry said that the government has a ‘moral responsibility’ to help prosecute those responsible.
But after the initial enquiries, the official causes of the fire and responsibilities are still being investigated by the police.
Minister Toskovski also stated that he had received offers of assistance from neighbouring countries, including Albania, Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia.
Aleksandar Vucic, Serbia's President says this is a disaster that impacts the entire region.
"This is a tragedy of incredible proportions for the entire Balkans, particularly for the remarkable, amicable, and fraternal North Macedonia. This is a tragedy of immense magnitude for a nation four times smaller than ours, so many fatalities, and Hristijan (Mickoski, Prime Minister of North Macedonia) told me that there will be over 60 dead and the question is how many more people will not be able to withstand the level of injuries they have at this moment."
Health Minister Arben Taravari informed that 118 people have been hospitalised, at least 18 of them in critical condition.
Director of a local hospital, Kristina Serafimova, says burns and poisoning are the main causes of hospitalisations.
"We treated about 70 patients here. Unfortunately, there were also deceased persons. The patients had burns and carbon monoxide poisoning. We gave them oxygen and examined them and treated their injuries."
With the possibility of the death toll rising, Macedonians have gathered in Kocani to hold a vigil for all victims of the fire.
The Macedonian government has declared seven days of national mourning.
