The Minister of the Interior of the Republic of North Macedonia, Pance Toshkovski, confirmed that pyrotechnics for the concert caused the fire in the disco in the city of Kocani, reported vesti.mk. The tragedy has so far confirmed the death of 51 people, and over 100 are injured. The deceased are from Delchevo, Kocani, Skopje and Shtip. They are between the ages of 14 and 25. Toshkovski said that several people have already been detained in the case and that the Ministry of Interior is taking all measures to investigate the causes of this tragedy.
The Minister expressed deep condolences to the relatives of the deceased and the injured.
"A prosecutor on duty has arrived at the scene, and an investigation is already underway into the case. At this moment, the most important thing is to remain calm and take all necessary steps. Anyone who made a mistake will be held accountable. Of course, autopsies will have to be performed to establish the identity of the deceased. We have deceased in several hospitals. We will have information for the public every hour, hour and a half.
The minister revealed that some of the organizers were among the injured.
Among those arrested is one of the owners of the disco, whose license expired on March 24.
"Some of the organizers are seriously injured. We are coordinating with the prosecutor's office and we will have more information soon. We will have to work step by step".
The minister stressed that everyone should feel moral responsibility for such a tragedy.
Toszkovski did not answer questions about the evacuation of the disco, saying that details would be available soon.
The minister also announced that, according to his information, there are currently enough blood units for the victims.