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tm/A birthday candle, a woman’s fall, and a dropped cake: the tragic moment that sparked a bar fire killing hundreds

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A deadly fire which killed 13 people at a bar in France is believed to have started after a woman dropped a birthday cake lit with candles after she tripped downstairs.

The fire – France’s deadliest in a decade – ripped through the Au Cuba Libre bar in Rouen, in the Normandy region, shortly before 1am local time.

It took hold of the basement which had been hired out for the private party and was packed with revellers aged 18-25.

One party member is said to have tripped and dropped the cake on the floor – sparking an inferno which took hold of foam cladding acting as soundproofing around the walls and ceiling of the room.

Some of the victims were poisoned by a toxic mix of gases released by the burning polystyrene and one of six people seriously injured remains in a critical condition.

 
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The fire is understood to have started in the basement of the Cuba Libre bar around midnight

 
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Most of the victims were attending a private birthday party in the basement of the bar

Relatives of victims this morning addressed the media in front of Au Cuba Libre in Rouen 
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Relatives of victims this morning addressed the media in front of Au Cuba Libre in Rouen

Devastated friends, family and witnesses comforted one another at the scene this morning 
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Devastated friends, family and witnesses comforted one another at the scene this morning

Around 50 firefighters tackled the blaze, which authorities are treating as a criminal incident – but are making it clear it was a ‘tragic accident’.

Some six or seven people are understood to have sustained serious injuries, while one remains in a critical condition in hospital this morning.

‘A large number of those who died were killed by the fire, others were overcome by the toxic fumes,’ said an officer at the scene.

One of the injured suffered burns to nearly 90 percent of the body and was in a critical condition, the officer added.

‘All of a sudden, everything blew,’ said Valerie Fouquet, who was outside on the terrace of the bar at the time.

‘We saw the smoke and we saw the flames, the chairs flew up, the window exploded.’

'A large number of those who died were killed by the fire, others were overcome by the toxic fumes,' said an officer at the scene 
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‘A large number of those who died were killed by the fire, others were overcome by the toxic fumes,’ said an officer at the scene

Rouen's mayor Yvon Robert (centre) described the incident as 'totally accidental' 
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Rouen’s mayor Yvon Robert (centre) described the incident as ‘totally accidental’

Some 50 firefighters tackled the blaze as it ripped through the small city centre bar 
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Some 50 firefighters tackled the blaze as it ripped through the small city centre bar

The relative of a victim spoke to journalists following the devastating fire which claimed 13 lives 
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The relative of a victim spoke to journalists following the devastating fire which claimed 13 lives

The fire took hold of the basement which had been hired out for the private party and was packed with revellers aged 18-25 
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The fire took hold of the basement which had been hired out for the private party and was packed with revellers aged 18-25

Witnesses to the fire were today being interviewed by police, while friends and family of those who died gathered close to the scene of the disaster 
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While authorities are treating the blaze as a criminal incident, they are making it clear it was a 'tragic accident' 
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Witnesses were today being interviewed by police, while friends and family of those who died gathered close to the scene of the disaster

France’s interior ministry said a judicial investigation was under way into the fire, which Rouen Mayor Yvon Robert described it as ‘totally accidental’.

The birthday party was ‘a moment of joy for those involved that … ended tragically,’ Robert said.

Survivors are talking to police in a bid to establish what caused the fire, while mourners are at the scene paying their respects.

That allayed initial public concerns that it could have been a terrorist attack in a city that this week buried a priest who was knifed to death by Islamist extremists in his church.

The fire took place just five miles from the Rouen suburb of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, where Father Jacques Hamel was murdered by two Isis terrorists on June 26th.

The fatal fire comes as yet another tragic blow to France, still reeling from terrorist attacks - one which occurred just five miles away days earlier 
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The fatal fire comes as yet another tragic blow to France, still reeling from terrorist attacks – one which occurred just five miles away days earlier

Mourners have been paying their respects at the scene

Locals have been laying flowers around the scene of the fatality

Mourners have been laying flowers and paying their respects at the scene

One youngster is still fighting for their life in hospital, officials have confirmed 
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One youngster is still fighting for their life in hospital, officials have confirmed

Fire crews remain at the scene in order to establish what happened 
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Fire crews remain at the scene in order to establish what happened

Police and fire emergency units were called to the scene at 12.50am local time where it took them 30 minutes to bring the fire under control 
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Police and fire emergency units were called to the scene at 12.50am local time where it took them 30 minutes to bring the fire under control

The burnt facade and broken front windows of the bar were protected by metal barriers and police this morning.

Laurent Labadie, Rouen’s deputy prosecutor, said neighbours initially heard ‘an explosion’ which made them think of terrorism.

But the noise was caused by the front glass window of the bar being ‘blown away’ by the heat caused by the blaze.

‘A judicial enquiry is underway into the cause of the fire,’ said Bernard Cazeneuve, France’s Interior Minister, who added that the initial theory was that an accident was to blame.

It is normal practice for criminal enquiries to be launched into lethal incidents in France.

France's Minister of State of Vocational Training and Apprenticeships Clotilde Valter addressed media outside the scene 
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France’s Minister of State of Vocational Training and Apprenticeships Clotilde Valter addressed media outside the scene

People have been attaching flowers to a barrier set up outside the ravaged Au Cuba Libre bar 
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People have been attaching flowers to a barrier set up outside the ravaged Au Cuba Libre bar

A heavy police presence remains at the scene while an investigation is carried out 
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A heavy police presence remains at the scene while an investigation is carried out

Emergency services found 13 bodies inside the bar and they were transported to the University Hospital of Rouen 
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Emergency services found 13 bodies inside the bar and they were transported to the University Hospital of Rouen

One party-goer was holding a cake covered in candles but tripped and fell,’ said a source close to the investigation.

‘The candles lit the walls, which were covered in a soft substance used for sound proofing.

‘It is thought that many succumbed to toxic fumes, and were then killed by the fire.

‘Lots of those in the bar were teenagers, or in their early twenties.

‘One of those injured is in a critical condition,’ the source added.

Mayor of Rouen, Yvon Robert attended the scene soon after 2am, and said it was ‘the worst catastrophe to hit the city’ in years.

At least 13 people were killed in the fire at a bar in Rouen in the Normandy region of France 
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At least 13 people were killed in the fire at a bar in Rouen in the Normandy region of France

Emergency services managed to pull six injured people from the bar aged between 18 and 25 
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Emergency services managed to pull six injured people from the bar aged between 18 and 25

Witnesses to the fire have reportedly been taken to Rouen Police Hall to be interviewed about the incident 
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Witnesses to the fire have reportedly been taken to Rouen Police Hall to be interviewed about the incident

The blaze, which was France's deadliest in a decade, was sparked by the candles of a birthday cake 
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The blaze, which was France’s deadliest in a decade, was sparked by the candles of a birthday cake

A police officer takes pictures in Au Cuba Libre as officials try to determine exactly what happened 
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A police officer takes pictures in Au Cuba Libre as officials try to determine exactly what happened

According to local reports, police and fire emergency units were called to the scene at 12.50am local time where it took them 30 minutes to bring the fire under control.

They managed to pull six injured people from the bar aged between 18 and 25.

Emergency services found 13 bodies inside the venue and they were transported to the University Hospital of Rouen.

‘A fire broke out in a bar in the city centre of Rouen this evening, according to an initial investigation, 13 are dead and six are injured, and more than 50 firemen attended the scene,’ Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said in a statement.

Local official Laurent Labadie, who was at the scene of the fire, also described the blaze as accidental.

The candles appear to have ignited the polystyrene ceiling of the basement room where the celebrations were taking place 
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The candles appear to have ignited the polystyrene ceiling of the basement room where the celebrations were taking place

The popular bar was almost completely gutted in the fire, which ripped through the venue shortly after midnight  
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The popular bar was almost completely gutted in the fire, which ripped through the venue shortly after midnight

The interior ministry, which announced the death toll in a statement early on Saturday, said the cause of the fire in the town-centre bar was being investigated 
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The interior ministry, which announced the death toll in a statement early on Saturday, said the cause of the fire in the town-centre bar was being investigated

The victims, who were primarily between the ages of 18-25, were poisoned by a toxic mix of gases released by the burning plastic 
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The victims, who were primarily between the ages of 18-25, were poisoned by a toxic mix of gases released by the burning plastic

The blaze in Rouen is France’s deadliest since September 2005 when an apartment building fire in the Paris suburb of L’Hay-les-Roses killed 18 people.

France has not seen such a high death toll in a night spot fire since a November 1970 blaze claimed the lives of 146 people, the majority of whom were their early 20s.

The interior ministry, which announced the death toll in a statement early on Saturday, said the cause of the fire in the town-centre bar was being investigated.

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