Spain: At least 13 people killed in nightclub fire in Murcia

At least 13 people have died in a nightclub fire in Murcia in southeast Spain, officials have said.

Rescuers are still searching for people unaccounted for after the blaze broke out in the early hours of the morning.

The fire tore through three adjoining nightclubs.

Four people were injured and the number of dead could rise, Murcia’s emergency services said.

Video posted by Murcia’s fire service on X, formerly Twitter, showed firefighters working to control flames inside the nightclub.

The fire had destroyed part of the roof, the footage showed.

Diego Seral, of Spain’s National Police, told reporters the collapse was making it difficult to locate victims, and it was hard to pinpoint yet where exactly the fire started.

The identification of the bodies would take time, he said.

Outside the club, young people hugged, looking shocked as they waited for information about those missing.

“I think we left 30 seconds to one minute before the alarms went off and all the lights went out [and] the screams saying there was a fire,” one survivor, who was not identified, said.

“Five family members and two friends are missing.”

A spokesperson for the Teatre nightclub, Maria Dolores Albellan, told reporters the fire originated in the neighbouring club, Fonda Milagros, before spreading to the two adjoining clubs.

Spanish media reported several birthday celebrations were taking place at the time.

Murcia mayor Jose Ballesta said they were working to establish the cause of the blaze.

“We are devastated,” he said on Spanish TV channel 24h.

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Mr Ballesta declared three days of mourning for those who had died and flags were lowered to half mast outside Murcia’s City Hall.

Four people have been treated in hospital for smoke inhalation.