France bar fire: Blaze kills 13 at birthday party
At least 13 killed and six injured after blaze tears through bar during birthday celebration in northern city of Rouen.
A fire in a bar in the northern French city of Rouen has killed at least 13 people and injured six others, officials say.
The blaze broke out early on Saturday in the basement room of the Cuba Libre bar during a birthday celebration.
“According to an initial investigation, 13 are dead and six are injured, and more than 50 firefighters attended the scene,” Bernard Cazeneuve, France’s interior minister, said in a statement.
“An inquiry is under way to establish the cause of the fire.”
The victims were aged between 18 and 25, according to local French newspapers.
One of the injured was in a critical condition, Yvan Cordier, secretary-general of the Seine-Maritime prefecture, told the AFP news agency.
Local official Laurent Labadie, who was at the scene of the fire, described the blaze as accidental.
One source close to the investigation said that candles on a birthday cake may have sparked the blaze.
