Six people died and 81 were injured when a nursing home caught fire last morning in Milan.
The flames started around 1 a.m. in a room in the residence. The two women inside were charred to death, while the other four victims, three women and one man, died from smoke inhalation. All were between the ages of 69 and 75.
The 81 injured, three of them in serious condition, remain admitted to various hospitals in the city, due to poisoning or injuries of varying degrees.
The residence, Casa dei Coniugi, housed 167 people at the time of the fire. The speed of the service personnel who raised the alarm managed to get the firefighters to contain the flames in the room of the two old women. Even so, the smoke spread rapidly throughout the building.
Firefighters rescued the elderly "one by one" due to their delicate state of health and forced the eviction of more than 100 residents in the area. The main hypothesis handled by the emergency services is that of an accidental fire, although they ensure that all hypotheses remain open.
The mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, assured this morning during a visit to the residence that the incident "could have been worse" and hopes "that the two hospitalized people who are in a delicate situation will not join".
The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, has expressed on Twitter her "maximum solidarity with the people involved in the fire" and her "deepest condolences to the families of the victims and best wishes for a speedy recovery for the injured".
The nursing home is located in a popular neighborhood in the southeast of Milan, it is owned by the City Council and is managed by a cooperative that controls 300 centers.
