Eight killed in Serbian retirement home blaze

Eight people died and seven were injured in a fire at a nursing home outside Belgrade on Monday which authorities said was caused by arson, Serbian state TV RTS reported.

The fire started at 3.30 a.m. (9:30 p.m. Sunday EST) local time with 30 people in the home, RTS reported, quoting the head of the government’s department for emergency situations, Luka Causevic.

The fire was put out quickly and all the injured were taken to hospitals in Belgrade. One woman is in a serious condition and on a ventilator, RTS reported.

The prosecutors office said the fire was caused by one of the residents of the nursing home, who was among those who died.

A detailed statement will be released later on Monday.

“There are indications that this tragedy was caused by criminal activity of one individual,” Nemanja Starovic, the minister for labor, employment and social issues, told RTS.