Blaze In Italian Elderly Home Kills 6, Injures 80

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

MILAN (Worthy News) – Survivors praised rescuers after an overnight fire in a retirement home in the Italian city of Milan reportedly killed six people and injured around 80, including three who are in critical condition.

The fire started in a first-floor room of the facility but was put out quickly and did not spread to the rest of the building, officials said. Yet the blaze produced a vast quantity of toxic fumes.

Two residents burned to death in their room, while four others died from intoxication, Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala said, speaking to reporters on the scene. “It could have been (even) worse. Having said that, six dead is a very heavy death toll,” Sala added, indicating that the facility housed 167 people.

Firefighters’ spokesman Luca Cari said the cause of the fire was under investigation but added that it was likely accidental.

Lucia, a resident, said she saw some of the people inside “gasping for air” at their windows, holding rags over their faces to protect themselves from the fumes.

However, she stressed that the rescuers “were wonderful” as they helped everybody. “Those who could walk, they walked them out; those who could not, I think they were carried out in their bed sheets.”

Firefighters intervened at the Casa dei Coniugi or “Home of the Spouses” residential facility in the south-eastern Corvetto neighborhood shortly after 1 a.m. (2300 GMT), authorities confirmed. They evacuated about 80 people, including many in wheelchairs, while another 80 or so were taken to hospital, local firefighters’ chief Nicola Miceli told RAI public television.

He recalled their rescue operations were “particularly complicated” due to heavy smoke, which limited visibility, and the fact that many residents could not stand without aid.

The Casa dei Coniugi residence can accommodate guests with different levels of self-sufficiency.

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