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International news media report that a fire in a care home in Latvia has killed 25 people. The fire broke out early in the morning of Friday 23 February in the care home in Alsunga, west of the capital Riga. Firefighters rescued more than 60 people but most of those on the top floor were trapped. The residents had mental disabilities and many fought with the firefighters attempting to rescue them. Extreme cold of -30C also hampered the extinguishing and rescue operations.
Fires in care homes can easily lead to multiple fatalities. Most new
care homes in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden are therefore
sprinklered and many existing homes in Finland and Norway have been
retrofitted with sprinklers. Elsewhere in Europe Scotland introduced a
requirement to fit sprinklers in all new care homes following a fire in
2004 which killed 14 residents at the Rosepark Care Home in Glasgow.
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