Deadly Hotel Fire Kills 66 at Turkish Ski Resort “`
A fire at a hotel in a popular northwestern Turkish ski resort resulted in a tragic loss of life on Tuesday, according to Turkey’s Interior Minister.
At least 51 additional individuals sustained injuries in the devastating incident, Ali Yerlikaya reported.
Following an on-site assessment, Yerlikaya somberly announced, “We are deeply grieved. The fire at this hotel has sadly claimed 66 lives.”
Health Minister Kemal Memisoglu confirmed that at least one of the injured is in critical condition.
The blaze ignited around 3:30 a.m. in the Grand Kartal hotel’s restaurant, a 12-story establishment located in Kartalkaya resort, Bolu province, according to official statements and news reports. The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.
Governor Abdulaziz Aydin revealed to Anadolu Agency that two victims perished after jumping from the building in a desperate attempt to escape. NTV television reported that others attempted to descend using bedsheets and blankets.
Aydin stated that 234 guests were registered at the hotel.
Necmi Kepcetutan, a ski instructor employed at the hotel, described awakening to the fire and his subsequent efforts to help evacuate approximately 20 guests. He recounted to NTV that heavy smoke significantly hampered guest navigation to the emergency exits.
He expressed concern for several of his students, stating, “I cannot reach some of my students. I hope they are OK.”
Television footage showed the hotel’s upper floors and roof engulfed in flames.
Witnesses and reports indicated a failure of the hotel’s fire detection system.
Atakan Yelkovan, a third-floor guest, recounted to IHA, “My wife smelled the burning. The alarm didn’t go off. We tried to go upstairs but couldn’t; there were flames. We went downstairs and came out here (outside).”
Yelkovan estimated a delay of approximately one hour before the arrival of firefighting crews.
“People on the upper floors were screaming. They hung down sheets…some tried to jump,” he described the scene.
The government has assigned six prosecutors to conduct a thorough investigation into the fire. NTV television speculated that the chalet-style exterior’s wooden cladding might have accelerated the fire’s spread.
The 161-room hotel’s cliffside location presented challenges to firefighting efforts, as reported by the station.
NTV broadcast images of the hotel’s smoke-damaged lobby, featuring shattered glass, a charred reception desk, and a fallen chandelier.
Kartalkaya, a popular ski resort approximately 300 kilometers (185 miles) east of Istanbul, experienced the fire during a school semester break, leading to high occupancy at local hotels.
Aydin’s office deployed 30 fire trucks and 28 ambulances to the scene.
As a precautionary measure, other hotels in the resort were evacuated, and guests were relocated to hotels in the Bolu area.
Separately, a gas explosion at a hotel in another Turkish ski resort resulted in four injuries.
The incident occurred at the Yildiz Mountain Winter Sports Center in Sivas province. The Sivas governor’s office reported minor injuries to two skiers and their instructor, along with second-degree burns to the hands and face of another instructor.