149 killed as fire rips through nightclub

At least 149 people were reported to have been killed and more than 300 injured after fire tore through a crowded Buenos Aires nightclub during a rock concert early today.

The blaze broke out late last night local time, quickly filling the building with smoke and setting off a stampede for the emergency exits at the Republica de la Crogmanon disco, where an Argentine rock band was performing.

“People were pushing and jumping over each other trying to get out,” Jose Maria Godoy, one of the concertgoers, said. “It was like a human wave. As people fell down running for the door, others just simply ran over them or pushed them down.”

Television images showed the bodies of some youngsters curled up on the pavements as bystanders and concertgoers carried people out of the smouldering building.

Hundreds of bystanders and relatives stood outside the club as rescue workers carried some of the wounded away on stretchers. Others could be seen treating the injured on the street in front of the disco, which is popular with teenagers.

Alfredo Stern of the Buenos Aires health department said at least 149 had been killed and more than 300 people injured.

City officials said it was not immediately clear what caused the fire, but several witnesses said they saw a flare hit a foam lining on the roof of concert hall, sparking the fire.

“Someone from the crowd tossed a flare and, immediately, there were flames,” said Fabian Zamudeo, a 22-year-old in the crowd.

“Parts of the roof started falling down in flames and people started running, knocking over the speakers and light stands.

“People were choking on smoke and I tried to push as many people out as I could.”

A youngster told the TodoNoticias television network that the heavy smoke quickly filled the concert hall.

“We could barely see there was so much smoke,” he said. ”People were kicking the doors down trying to get out.”

Argentine media reported as many 1,500 people were believed to have been in the building at the time, with some saying the amount could be almost twice as much.

The fire was the worst in South America since a blaze swept a Paraguayan supermarket in August, killing 399 people in an Asuncion suburb. Authorities later said the doors were ordered shut by the store’s owners to prevent looting, trapping people inside.