“After the fatal accident in North Macedonia and the telephone conversation between Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis and the foreign minister of the neighbouring country this morning, with coordinated actions by the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Health, Civil Protection and the Greek Emergency Medical Services (EKAB), Greece has taken over all the burn victims requested by the European Civil Protection Mechanism,” government sources said.

“The 18 wounded will be treated at the Papanikolaou hospital in Thessaloniki and at military hospitals in Athens and Thessaloniki. Already at the Papanikolaou hospital, 3 seriously injured 25, 25 and 19-year-olds are being treated with extensive burns, one of whom is already undergoing surgery,” they stress.

The three ambulances with the injured arrived at the Papanikolaou Hospital

The three young people from North Macedonia who were seriously injured in the deadly incident arrived at the Papanikolaou hospital in Thessaloniki by ambulance at about 17:30 on Sunday afternoon (16/3).

They are already in the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital.

The foreign ministries of the two countries are in constant contact for the transfer of other serious cases to the Papanikolaou hospital. In fact, beds in the first ICU are being rearranged to be ready to receive the new cases.

According to the management of the Papanikolaou Hospital, the structure is ready to receive as many cases as needed.

Corruption case investigated by authorities

Authorities in North Macedonia are investigating the possibility that the fire that killed at least 59 people at the Kotsani club was a case of corruption, Interior Minister Panze Toskovski said.

“This company does not have a legal license to operate. This license, like many other things in the past, is linked to corruption,” the interior minister said during a news conference in Kochanyi, the site of the tragedy during a club concert last night.

More than twenty people are suspected in the investigation, according to the Home Minister. Among them are the two key members of the hip-hop group DNK, very popular in North Macedonia. The band’s concert started at midnight. About three hours later the fire broke out.

The club owner’s son, the manager of the managing company and members of the store’s security are among the suspects.

Around fifteen people have been arrested including officials of the Ministry of Finance. The remaining suspects are hospitalized or included among the dead, according to Pancho Toskovski.