North Macedonia: At least 10 die in COVID-19 hospital fire
In this image taken from video provided by RTV21, a fire burns at a hospital treating COVID-19 patients in the North Macedonian city of Tetovo, late Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2021. The city's mayor, Teuta Arifi, told local media the fire spread with great speed, but the authorities still had no information if any of the patients being treated in the hospital had been injured or killed in the blaze.[RTV21 via AP]
Police and public health officials in North Macedonia say at least 10 people died and many others were injured in a fire at a makeshift hospital for COVID-19 patients.
The blaze occurred late Wednesday in the western city of Tetovo, where the facility was set up following a recent spike in infections in the region.
Health Ministry officials said injured medical staff and patients along with over evacuees were being transferred to hospitals in the capital Skopje, some 45 kilometers (28 miles) to the east.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known, but Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said in a Facebook post that the blaze followed an explosion at the site.
With less than 30% of the country’s population fully vaccinated, North Macedonia has seen a significant spike in infections and deaths since late August.