Commercial city in northern Makedonia is preparing for burials because nightclub fire triggers protests

Kocani, North Macedonia (AP) -Community workers in Kocani Gruben on Tuesday for the dozens of young people who were killed at a nightclub fire were held as protests in cities in North Macedonia.

The authorities said they Nightclub brand In the eastern city, the use of pyrotechnicians in the interior and numerous security violations at the venue was caused by the use of pyrotechnicians. During a live concert, 59 people were killed and more than 150 injured.

The fire has triggered Outrage over alleged bribery and corruption Combined with the security violations in the night club.

The occupations used to dig in Kocani rows of graves, while the city was waiting for the funeral of young residents, whose remains are still being processed for identification.

“It's very bad, very bad.” Children of our friends are gone.

In the late Tuesday, the rallies took place in solidarity with the families of the victims, with thousands in the capital, Skopje, held up candles and flashlights from cell phones during the nightly event.

Pensioner Zoran Jovanovski said he hoped that the tragedy would trigger reforms to combat corruption. “The solution is very difficult.

Government officers appealed for calm become violent. The demonstrators in Kocani picked up a van, hurled stones in a parish building and shattered a cafeteria that was assumed that she had shared property with the night club.

So far, the investigation has shown that the club has doubled at least its 250-person capacity without proper licensing. Officials say that the numerous security violations did not include any emergency exits, insufficient fire equipment, the use of flammable cladding and no sprinkler system. Many victims were kicked with feet when panic concert goers hurried to a single outcome.

The neighboring Serbia and Bulgaria, who immediately offered support after the tragedy, observe a day of national grief on Tuesday in solidarity with north -Macedonia.

Medical specialists from the Czech Republic, Serbia and Israel have arrived to support treatment efforts for injuries, the Ministry of Health said. The European Union helps the transport of burners of victims to nearby countries.

Around 50 patients are treated in mainly neighboring and nearby countries, most of them with serious burns.

The catastrophe has reinforced the testing of corruption in northern Macedonia, which the EU previously identified as a major subject Obstacle to join the country to the block. The authorities investigate allegations that club owners have bribed civil servants to avoid safety regulations.

The government has ordered nationwide inspections of all night clubs and other entertainment sites.

In neighboring Greece, the Minister of North Macedonia and Health Ministers visited a hospital in which three 19, 25 and 26 years in the intensive care unit were treated in the intensive care unit.

Foreign Minister Timco Mucunski described the fire as “the most tragic moment in the history of my nation”.

In conversation with reporters in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki, he added: “This is a moment when it is most likely in our collective memory for our lifespan.

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Testorides by Skopje, North Macedonia. The Associated Press Writer Derek Gatopoulos in Athens, Greece, contributed to this report.