Sixteen people have died and three were injured after a fire swept through a nursing home for elderly residents in Manado, the capital of North Sulawesi province in Indonesia, local officials say. The blaze broke out on Sunday evening and was brought under control about an hour after the emergency services were alerted.
The city fire department received reports of a fire at the Damai retirement home at around 20:30 local time (12:30 GMT) on Sunday. Firefighters said the flames were extinguished at about 21:30 (13:30 GMT).
Many of the victims were discovered inside their rooms, according to Jimmy Rotinsulu, head of Manado's fire and rescue agency, who told AFP that the deceased were likely residents who had been asleep when the fire began. Police have launched an inquiry into the cause of the blaze.
Authorities said the bodies have been taken to a hospital and urged relatives of those who may have been at the home to come forward to assist with identification. A local official speaking to online news outlet Detikcom said many of the victims were in an "unrecognisable" condition.
Steven Mokodompit, who lives nearby and helped with evacuations, told Detikcom he arrived at the nursing home at about 20:00 (12:00 GMT) and saw flames already coming from the building's kitchen. He described hearing an explosion and cries for help as the situation escalated.
He said: "In just five minutes, the fire had engulfed the building," and added that he and others used stacked tables and ladders to evacuate residents from the rear of the property.
Police continue to investigate the cause of the fire. Officials have not yet released details on any suspected ignition source or whether safety standards at the facility will be a focus of the inquiry.
Fatal fires in public and private buildings remain a significant safety concern in Indonesia. Earlier this month, a separate blaze in a multi-storey office block in Jakarta resulted in the deaths of 22 people, highlighting recurring fire-safety challenges across the country.