66 killed in fire at Turkey ski resort, guests jump out of windows

The fire broke out at around 3.30 am in the restaurant of the 12-storey Grand Kartal hotel in the resort of Kartalkaya in Bolu province, officials and reports said. The cause of the fire was under investigation.

In Short

• Blaze started on restaurant floor, spread rapidly
• Guests jumped from windows, used bedsheets to escape
• 234 guests were staying at the hotel during the fire

A devastating fire at the Grand Kartal Hotel in Turkey's Bolu mountains claimed the lives of 66 people on Tuesday, forcing many panicked guests to jump out of windows in a desperate bid to escape the flames, news agency Reuters reported. The incident unfolded at the Kartalkaya ski resort, a popular destination in northwestern Turkey, where 234 guests were staying at the time.

The fire began around 3.30 am on the restaurant floor of the 12-story hotel, quickly spreading through the building. Witnesses described chaos as smoke filled the air, and the hotel's fire detection system reportedly failed to operate.

Guests used makeshift ropes of tied bedsheets to climb down from upper floors, while others leapt from windows to escape the inferno. According to Bolu Governor Abdulaziz Aydin, two victims died as a result of jumping in panic.

A drone-view footage from after the fire, shared by news agency Reuters, showed smoke coming out of the ski-resort and rescue teams using windows to pull out those stuck inside.

Television footage showed the hotel's roof and upper floors engulfed in flames, with charred wooden cladding and a blackened lobby where shattered glass and burned furniture littered the ground.

Ski instructor Necmi Kepcetutan, who escaped the fire, said he managed to help around 20 guests evacuate, but the thick smoke made it nearly impossible for many to find the fire escapes.

Health Minister Kemal Memisoglu confirmed that 51 people were injured, with one in critical condition. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya expressed grief over the loss of life, calling it a moment of deep pain for the nation.

Guests reported significant delays in the arrival of firefighting teams, with some claiming it took nearly an hour for help to reach the scene.

"People on the upper floors were screaming," said Atakan Yelkovan, a guest staying on the third floor told news agency Associated Press. "The alarm did not go off. My wife smelled the burning, and we barely managed to get out."

Authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the fire, appointing six prosecutors to lead the inquiry. Reports suggest that the chalet-style wooden cladding on the hotel's exterior may have accelerated the flames, making the fire harder to control. Efforts to combat the blaze were further hampered by the hotel's location on the side of a cliff.

The tragedy occurred during Turkey's school semester break, a peak travel period when the region's hotels are fully booked. Other hotels in the resort were evacuated as a precaution, with guests relocated to accommodations in nearby Bolu.

In a separate incident on the same day, a gas explosion at the Yildiz Mountain Winter Sports Centre in Sivas province, central Turkey, injured four people. While unrelated, the incidents underscore the vulnerabilities in safety measures at such resorts.