The fire hit a building belonging to a social landlord. The buildings of the recognition phase by firefighters continues in difficult conditions. The balance sheet is therefore not final.
Le Monde with AFP
This is a fire of unprecedented magnitude for decades that hit a building belonging to a social landlord on the island of Reunion, in the Sunday night (December 12th) to Monday. At least five people were killed there. the fire occurred in an apartment in the building” Marina “, located to the Virgin in the neighborhood of Montgaillard in Saint-Denis, according to the chain 1 st , the portal for overseas territories.
“At this stage, the identity of these people is not determined,” indicated the prefect of Reunion, Jacques Billant and counsel for Saint-Denis, Veronique Denizot, in a statement. Two other victims are in absolute emergency, says the prefecture, and nineteen others are relative urgency. Of these, eight were hospitalized, specify the prefecture and the floor. “Building Phase recognition by firefighters continues in difficult conditions,” they add. The balance sheet is therefore not final.
Earlier Monday morning, the emergency services had initially announced the death of one victim, discovered in the rubble of the building. For some reason at this stage, the fire started around 1 am 15 (22 h 15 in France) in one of the apartments in the building owned by the property company of the department of La Réunion (SIDR), a social landlord .
“The flames quickly spread to the entire building by wooden walkways,” said Colonel Frédédic Léguiller, commanding the fire and rescue service (SDIS). “I was awakened by creaking, I did not understand right away and then I saw the lights. I yelled to wake my family,” said Jeysone, a young man of twenty years who lived in a housing 4 th floor.
a hundred apartments destroyed
“We were able to get out, but I do not know what happened to the neighbors. It all happened so fast, just two minutes,” he added in shock. “Thirteen people directly threatened by fire were rescued by firefighters,” said Colonel Léguiller.
“We now are investigating apartment by apartment to remove the doubt (about the possible presence of victims),” added the colonel Léguiller. It was during these investigations that other people were found. On the hardware side, more than three hundred tenants were evacuated and hundreds of apartments were destroyed.
A fire of this magnitude had not produced Reunion decades. The videos posted on social networks by multiple users show impressive flames. The blaze was visible from several points of the city.
Coming from all the barracks of the island, a hundred firefighters intervened. Their task was complicated “by a strong wind fanned the fire” and “the critical hour, at 1 am people sleep,” said the officer SDIS.
Taken over by communal services and the Red Cross, 190 people were housed in a gymnasium in the city.
#Incendie of a building in La Trinité.
Thank you to the teams to @CroixRouge # Réunion mobilized in the center of Hebe … https://t.co/XTKAkO8uzu
“What these families suffered is violent, it is now they rest, they resumed their minds, they are supported,” said Ericka Bareigts, mayor of Saint-Denis. “A psychological unit will be activated and a special issue dedicated to the victims and their families will be in place,” she said.