At least 66 dead, 51 injured in hotel fire at a ski resort in northwestern Turkey

Turkey: The death toll from a fire that engulfed a hotel at a ski resort in northwestern Turkey on Tuesday has risen to 66, with Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya confirming the devastating news.

The fire broke out in the early hours at the Grand Kartal Hotel, located in the Kartalkaya resort, approximately 170 kilometres (100 miles) northwest of the Turkish capital, Ankara. As the blaze tore through the 12-storey building, desperate guests made attempts to flee, some using bedsheets to escape through windows in a heart-wrenching scene of terror.

Desperate Escape Attempts

Eyewitnesses have described a scene of utter chaos and panic as guests attempted to flee the hotel in the dead of night.

"I heard screams around midnight, (hotel) residents were shouting for help," said Baris Salgur, who works at a nearby hotel.

"They asked for a blanket, saying they will jump. We did what we could, we brought rope, pillows, we brought a sofa. Some people threw themselves once the flames approached them," he added.

Disturbing media reports suggest that three individuals died after jumping from the windows in a desperate bid to escape the raging fire.Footage from the scene shows bedsheets hanging from the hotel windows, with some guests having tied them together in a last-ditch attempt to descend to safety.

The hotel’s wooden cladding and proximity to a cliff made firefighting efforts particularly difficult, as rescuers struggled to tackle the blaze.

Official Response and Investigation

Several government ministers, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, have visited the scene of the fire. "

Our pain is great," Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said, addressing reporters at the Kartalkaya resort.

"66 citizens lost their lives and 51 others wounded," he added.

The fire, which broke out at 3:27 am local time (0027 GMT), is believed to have started in the hotel’s restaurant before quickly spreading through the building.

Emergency responders contained the fire by the afternoon, but the hotel’s structure was severely compromised, and officials warned that the building could collapse. Authorities have launched both administrative and judicial investigations into the fire's cause.

"All necessary steps will be taken to shed light on all aspects of the incident and to hold those responsible accountable," President Erdogan said, cutting short an address to his ruling AKP party congress in Ankara.

Safety Concerns and Survivor Accounts

As rescue efforts unfolded, one survivor, who managed to escape the flames, spoke out about the lack of safety measures at the hotel. The individual revealed that no alarms were triggered when the fire started and lamented the absence of fire escapes or smoke detectors in the building. The Tourism Minister, Nuri Ersoy, confirmed that the hotel had two fire escapes, but it appears that safety measures were insufficient for the scale of the disaster.

The fire spread so quickly that guests had little time to react. Witnesses said that the flames approached rapidly, leaving some trapped with no way to escape. Television footage captured the wrecked lobby of the hotel, showing shards of glass scattered on the floor and the reception area, along with the charred remains of wooden furniture.

Government Pledges Accountability

Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc confirmed that a team of six prosecutors had been allocated to investigate the incident.

"All necessary steps will be taken to shed light on all aspects of the incident and to hold those responsible accountable," he reiterated.

The survivors who were able to escape the flames have since been rehoused in nearby hotels, as authorities continue to assess the damage and conduct investigations. Meanwhile, the nation mourns the loss of so many lives in what has become one of Turkey’s most devastating fires in recent years.

AP