A girl rescued from a fire at the children’s shelter Virgen de la Asuncion, March 8, 2017. © Danilo Ramirez / AFP
Guatemala’s volunteer fire department has reported 19 people dead and 25 injured following a fire at an orphanage in the Las Anonas area of San José Pinula, Guatemala.
The fire is understood to have broken out following disturbances in the early hours of the morning, but details around the cause are not yet known.
A spokesman for the volunteer firefighters told local radio station Emisoras Unidas that 11 girls from the orphanage have been transferred to the San Juan de Dios general hospital, with nine in critical condition and three undergoing surgery, reports the AP.
A further six children were transferred to the Roosevelt Hospital with first and second degree burns.
De 14 internas del Hogar Seguro, ingresadas al Hospital General, 5 tienen quemaduras grado 3 y una grado 4. Vía @Cperezm_pl pic.twitter.com/gPz9qARURy
— Prensa Libre (@prensa_libre) March 8, 2017
