Dozens were killed after a hotel in the Polo ski resort caught fire

At least 66 people have been killed in a fire that swept through a popular ski resort hotel in Türkiye, causing people to jump out of windows.

The fire broke out at the 12-storey Grand Kartal Hotel at 03:27 local time (00:27 GMT) during a busy holiday period where 234 people were staying.

The Turkish Ministry of the Interior had announced an initial death toll of 10, largely dead in the hours following the fire. At least two people died after trying to jump to safety.

It took 12 hours to extinguish the fire. The Minister of Justice said that four people were arrested, including the owner.

“Our pain is great,” Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said.

Footage circulating in Türkiye showed linens hanging from windows that were used by those trying to escape from the burning building.

Ski instructor Najmi Kipsitotan told the BBC that he was on the second floor of the hotel when the fire broke out and was able to get out through the ski room. Then he helped with relief efforts.

Witnesses said the family that owned the hotel was there at the time of the fire, and Kepsitotan said he saw some family members outside.

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, but Bolu Governor Abdulaziz Aydin said that initial reports indicate that it broke out in the restaurant section on the fourth floor of the hotel and spread to the upper floors.

Aydin said the distance between the hotel in Kartalkaya and Bolu city centre, combined with the freezing weather conditions, meant it took more than an hour for fire engines to arrive. Emergency services sent 267 workers to the site.

The hotel is investigating whether guests, including children, were trapped in their rooms as the fire spread.

The hotel had two fire exits, according to the Minister of Interior, and one of the hotel workers said that they were able to save between 30 and 35 people.

Justice Minister Yilmaz Tonk said that prosecutors had been allocated to investigate the fire.

The hotel was last inspected in 2024, and the tourism minister said there were no fire safety concerns at the hotel before Tuesday’s disaster.

The Bolu Mountains are popular with skiers from Istanbul and the capital, Ankara, and the hotel was operating at a high occupancy rate at the start of the two-week school holiday.

The northwestern city is located about 170 kilometers (105 miles) from Ankara.

Although the fire was limited to one hotel, the governor told Turkish media that a nearby hotel had been evacuated as a precaution.

The guests evacuated from the hotel were transferred to hotels near Bolu city centre.