Only six of the 13 who died in a Latin American nightclub in Murcia have been identified, while their deaths will be investigated as reckless killings.

Thirteen people have been killed, the toll taken on Sunday by the raging fire at a nightclub in the city of Murcia frequented by Latin Americans.where loved ones joined identification efforts amid the pain.

The Spanish legal system will investigate these deaths as reckless homicides. caused thirty-six hours of work by firefighters who wrote a message of solidarity with the family members on Tuesday.

“The early morning of October 1 will remain etched in our hearts forever,” the fire brigade wrote on its social networks. Up to 100 troops and 22 vehicles arrived on the scene to try to mitigate the effects of the catastrophe.

An investigative judge from Murcia “will be the one to lead the investigation to clarify the facts and, where necessary, clear any potential criminal responsibility,” a court statement said on Tuesday.

The magistrate “awaits the work of identification” of the victims, including Colombians, Nicaraguans, Ecuadorians and Spaniardsafter “the autopsy by forensic physicians” was completed to determine “the causes and circumstances of the deaths,” the statement said.

If the investigation concludes that “there has been a failure to take preventive measures” against fires and reckless killings, this is confirmed, Those found guilty could face up to four years in prison.or even nine given the high number of victims, the attorney general of the Murcia region, José Luis Díaz Manzanera, explained to the Murcia newspaper La Opinión.

As announced on Monday by the Murcia City Council (southeast), the Fonda Milagros nightclub, a well-known Latin music venue where the fire broke out around 6 a.m. on Sunday, had been ordered to close since October 2022 due to the lack of a valid operating permit.

One of Fonda Milagros’ lawyers, Francisco Javier Verdú, stated on public television TVE on Tuesday that the club’s paperwork was “in order,” adding that authorities had carried out an inspection of the property “six or eight months ago.” had been carried out and that they recently asked to replace two doors to make them fireproof, which was done.

“The flames have swallowed them up”

“Everyone knew that this worked, there was never a report that the activity had to stop, (…) that it had to close,” Verdú emphasized about the nightclub that advertised salsa, cumbia or reggaeton parties on social networks. .

According to police, six of the thirteen deceased have been identified through their fingerprints, but the rest will have to be identified through DNA testing.

For this reason, relatives approach police headquarters to deliver items such as toothbrushes or hair of their loved ones, which can be used for identification.

This is the case of Miriam Montealegre, a Nicaraguan who came to Murcia from her country seventeen years ago in search of work and who lost her sister-in-law Marta Hernández, her cousins ​​Sergio and Eric Torres, and his partner, Orfilia. in the fire, the woman told the newspaper El País.

“They were engulfed by the flames, but we want to know what happened,” Montealegre said.

Montealegre decided not to attend Eric Torres’ 30th birthday celebration on the second-floor stalls of the nightclub, which a witness described as “a labyrinth” and where authorities suspect the fire could have started.

Torches

At this time, investigations have not clarified what caused the tragedy, but a customer at the Teatre nightclub told the press on Tuesday that when she saw lit torches in the premises, “she feared the worst.”

The woman, named María Belén, told reporters that at one point during the party, torches were lit that reached up to the ceiling and up to the spotlights next to those responsible for playing the music.

The young woman, who left 20 minutes before the fire broke out from the place where she was dancing with some friends, explained that she was sitting next to the bar and noticed how the jet of air conditioning fell on her and, unlike the rest At night, when it was cold, he felt so hot that he became overwhelmed and decided to go home.

When the fire started, more than half of the people had already left the building because the announced music sessions had ended, the young woman says.

To assist in the investigation, Murcia’s firefighters are preparing a report, explained a spokesman, Juan Ángel Navidad, who told the Antena 3 channel that four of the victims could have hidden in a bathroom on the second floor, which collapsed.

Another seven bodies were found in “two groups in the same corridor, just above the hall on the (second) floor,” he added. (JO)