10 Dead, 32 Injured in Hotel Fire at Turkish Ski Resort

The fire erupted around 3:30 a.m. in the restaurant of the 12-story Grand Kartal Hotel in Bolu province. Authorities are currently investigating the cause of the blaze.

Two victims died after reportedly jumping from the building in panic, while others tried to escape by climbing down using sheets and blankets, said Governor Abdulaziz Aydin. The hotel was hosting 234 guests at the time of the incident.

Necmi Kepcetutan, a ski instructor at the hotel, recounted rushing out of the building after waking up to the fire and then helping about 20 guests evacuate. He described the hotel as being filled with thick smoke, making it difficult for people to find the fire escape. “I cannot reach some of my students. I hope they are OK,” he told NTV.

Television footage showed flames engulfing the roof and top floors of the hotel, with significant damage to the building. The hotel’s exterior, designed with wooden cladding in a chalet style, may have contributed to the rapid spread of the fire, local reports suggested. The hotel’s location on the side of a cliff also hindered firefighting efforts.

The 161-room hotel was packed due to the school semester break, a busy season for the resort. Authorities dispatched 30 fire trucks and 28 ambulances to the scene, and nearby hotels were evacuated as a precaution, with guests relocated to other accommodations in Bolu.

In another incident, a natural gas explosion at a hotel in the Yildiz Mountain Winter Sports Center in Sivas province, central Turkey, injured four people. Two alpine skiers and their instructor sustained minor injuries, while another instructor suffered second-degree burns.

The government has appointed six prosecutors to investigate the cause of the deadly fire.