Tragic Fire at Chilean Nursing Home Claims 16 Lives

At least 16 elderly residents have died in a fire at a nursing home in Chile.

Ten others were evacuated after the blaze broke out at El Edén home in Pitrufquén, about 640km south of Santiago, on Friday evening.

Jorge Granada, a prosecutor leading the investigation, said it was not yet clear what caused the incident.

President José Antonio Kast ordered a review of nursing home conditions across the country and pledged full collaboration with the justice system.

Kast said, "We will fully collaborate with the justice system to clarify what happened, determine where failures may have existed in oversight or prevention, identify what alerts were raised and what actions were taken in response to them."

He added, "We need to know the truth and, based on that, correct whatever is necessary to do everything possible to prevent a tragedy like this from happening again."

The fire began around 22:30 local time and was fully extinguished on Saturday morning.

Firefighters were still clearing debris and removing collapsed roofing on Saturday, while police cordoned off the area for safety.

Local mayor Jacqueline Romero expressed deep sorrow, stating, "It is a situation that fills our souls with great sorrow and pain. We have been providing support to the families."