A footballer died after trying to save revellers in a nightclub fire, Daily Mail reports.
Andrej Lazarov, 25, died in the fire at the Pulse club in Kocani, North Macedonia.
At least 59 people perished in the horrific incident while more than 155 were injured, according to officials.
Lazarov was a player for Macedonian First Football League club FC Shkupi.
The club wrote: “With deep sorrow, we announce that our footballer Andrej Lazarov was among the victims of the tragic fire in Kočani. As the heroic person he was, Lazarov lost his life while trying to help others escape the flames.
“During his courageous act, he was overcome by smoke. His bravery and humanity in those final moments will always be remembered.
“This is an immense loss for our club, his teammates, and the football community. Words cannot express the pain we feel during this tragedy.”
Lazarov was a former youth international for Macedonia and spent time playing in Croatia for just over a year before joining Shkupi in September.
The blaze broke out in the early hours of Sunday at the Pulse club in Kocani, a town 100 kilometres east of the capital Skopje.
Emergency services rushed to the scene, including firefighters from surrounding towns, where more than 1,000 concertgoers had gathered at the venue for a performance by hip-hop duo DNK.
The concert began at around midnight and the fire is reported to have started at approximately 3am local time on Sunday, according to online media outlet SDK.
Social media footage shows huge flames engulfing the nightclub, with large plumes of smoke billowing into the air.
Clips from inside the venue show the use of two pyrotechnics during the performance, known as stage jets – a type of indoor fireworks used during concerts.
Very shortly after their deployment flames are clearly visible above the band, which quickly spread.
Speaking outside the local police station, minister of the interior Pance Toskovski said the fire was probably caused by sparks from the pyrotechnics hitting the ceiling, which was made of a highly flammable material.
He added: ‘At the moment of activating the so-called sprinklers, the sparks caught the ceiling that was made of easily flammable material after which for a very short period of time the fire spread across the whole discotheque, creating a thick smoke.’
Footage verified by the BBC also shows people inside the club trying to extinguish the flames on the ceiling, with the crowd milling around unsure how to proceed.
According to witnesses, several people were subsequently crushed to death during a ‘stampede’, Skopje-based radio station Lider reported.
‘According to the data we have by now, 51 persons lost their lives and more than 100 persons are injured,’ Mr Toskovski said.
Most of the people who have died and are injured are said to be between the ages of 14 and 25.
The wounded were transported to the local hospital in the town and to facilities in the town of Stip, 30 kilometres to the south, while helicopters ferried some of the injured to hospitals in the capital Skopje.
Een tragisch incident vond plaats in de vroege uren van de ochtend toen een voetballer probeerde om feestgangers te redden bij een nachtclubbrand, maar helaas zelf om het leven kwam. Het nieuws heeft de sportwereld geschokt en herinnert ons aan de moed en opoffering die sommige mensen bereid zijn te tonen in noodsituaties.
De voetballer, wiens naam nog niet is vrijgegeven, was aanwezig in de nachtclub toen er brand uitbrak. In een heldhaftige daad probeerde hij samen met anderen de aanwezigen te evacueren en te redden. Helaas werd hij overweldigd door de rook en vlammen en kon hij niet op tijd ontsnappen.
De tragedie benadrukt het belang van brandveiligheid en het belang van het hebben van een noodplan in geval van een noodsituatie. Nachtclubs en andere uitgaansgelegenheden moeten ervoor zorgen dat ze voldoen aan alle veiligheidsvoorschriften en dat ze beschikken over de juiste apparatuur en procedures om mensen te evacueren in geval van brand.
De voetballer wordt herdacht als een held die zijn leven heeft gegeven om anderen te redden. Zijn moed en opoffering zullen niet worden vergeten en zijn nalatenschap zal voortleven in de harten van degenen die hij heeft geholpen.
Het incident herinnert ons er ook aan dat het belangrijk is om waakzaam te blijven en snel te handelen in noodsituaties. Het kan het verschil maken tussen leven en dood. Laten we samen rouwen om het verlies van deze dappere voetballer en laten we zijn moedige daad eren door ervoor te zorgen dat we altijd voorbereid zijn op noodsituaties en bereid zijn om anderen te helpen wanneer dat nodig is.
