The accident occurred on Friday evening in the Araucanía region, located 640 kilometers south of the country’s capital Santiago. Firefighters managed to extinguish the fire early Saturday morning.
Photos shared on social media show huge flames rising above the building in the dark.
“We express our sorrow and shock over the death of 16 elderly people in this tragedy,” said officials from the Pitrufquén municipality in their statement.
There were a total of 26 residents in the nursing home. Ten of them survived and were taken to the local hospital, the statement said.
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The local mayor Jacqueline Romero reported that municipal health care and public safety teams, firefighters, and police responded to the incident.
“This is a situation that fills our souls with great sorrow and pain. We (…) provide support to the families,” she said.
The cause of the fire is not yet clear.
“We are currently conducting investigation procedures, including inspecting the scene and interviews, to determine the origin and cause of the fire and to rule out the involvement of third parties,” prosecutor Jorge Granada told local media.
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