'My pain is incurable.' Nightclub fire leaves North Macedonia grappling with grief, accountability

KOCANI, North Macedonia (AP) — As families gathered outside a hospital for updates, Tomco Stojanov had already been given the devastating news. His 25-year-old son, Andrej, had been killed Sunday in a nightclub fire that left dozens dead, many trampled during a desperate bid to escape.

“Thank you for your condolences, but my pain is incurable. The wound is incurable,” Stojanov said, holding up a photograph of his son, clean shaven and wearing a suit jacket. “He died while returning and entering to save other people. And he was pushed, run over, that’s how my son died.”

North Macedonia is grappling with the loss of dozens of young lives in Sunday’s nightclub inferno in the eastern town of Kocani, while trying to hold those responsible to account and prevent another calamity.

Relatives of victims leave a hospital in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Monday, March 17, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub early Sunday. (AP Photo/Visar Kryeziu)

A woman cries while waiting in line to write condolence messages for the victims of a massive nightclub fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Monday, March 17, 2025, (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

Relatives of victims leave a hospital in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Monday, March 17, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub early Sunday. (AP Photo/Visar Kryeziu)

A woman writes a condolence message for the victims of a massive nightclub fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Monday, March 17, 2025, (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

People wait in line to write condolence messages for the victims of a massive nightclub fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Monday, March 17, 2025, (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

Fire tore through the overcrowded Club Pulse during a live concert, leaving 59 people dead and more than 150 injured from burns, smoke inhalation and being trampled in the panicked escape toward the building’s single exit.

Videos showed sparkling pyrotechnics on the stage hitting the club’s ceiling and igniting the blaze as a band played.

The fire that shook the nation of 2 million — where close-knit extended family bonds made the disaster personal to many — was the latest in a string of deadly nightclub fires around the world. People as young as 16 were among the casualties, and the nation declared seven days of mourning.

“We are all in shock, and I am shocked myself: as a mother, as a person, as a president,” North Macedonian President Gordana Davkova Siljanovska said in an address to the nation Sunday night.

The building of a nightclub is damaged following a massive fire early Sunday in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Monday, March 17, 2025, (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

Support beams are charred in the partially collapsed roof of the building of a nightclub, damaged following a massive fire early Sunday in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Monday, March 17, 2025, (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

A woman walks past North Macedonia flags flapping in the wind at half staff in front of a Government building in Skopje, North Macedonia, Monday, March 17, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub in the town of Kocani, early Sunday. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

A cyclist goes past a banner reads: “Kocani” hanging from a fence outside the St. Clement Christian Orthodox church in Skopje, North Macedonia, Monday, March 17, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub in the town of Kocani, early Sunday. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski)

Safety code violations in the club

Authorities say they are investigating allegations of bribery surrounding the nightclub that was crammed with young revelers and at double capacity. And North Macedonia’s government ordered a sweeping three-day inspection to be carried out at all nightclubs and cabarets across the country, starting Monday.

An aerial photograph shows the site of a nightclub in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub early Sunday. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

State prosecutor Ljupco Kocevski said a preliminary inspection of the nightclub had revealed numerous safety code violations including a lack of emergency exits, an insufficient number of fire extinguishers and improper access for emergency vehicles.

The fire caused the roof of the single-story building to partially collapse, revealing the charred remains of wooden beams and debris.

“The omissions are significant. I can confidently say that this is a failure of the system,” the prosecutor told reporters, also noting the lack of an overhead extinguisher system and fire alarms and the use of flammable materials to line the inside walls.

The country was in mourning as people watched harrowing scenes in the town of 25,000 people, where rescuers for hours carried out their grim task of removing the charred bodies of clubgoers.

A state coroner said the bodies were being brought for identification in batches from morgues due to the high number of people killed.

A woman cries outside a hospital in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, following a massive fire in a nightclub early Sunday. (AP Photo/Visar Kryeziu)

A man cries outside a hospital in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub early Sunday. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

Neighboring countries provide help

Flags around the country have been lowered to half-staff, and the death toll may rise further, with 20 of the injured in critical condition, Health Minister Arben Taravari said.

Neighboring and nearby countries — Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia and Turkey — along with a number of others have already accepted some 50 patients with the most serious injuries, while several countries are also sending medical teams to North Macedonia, officials said.

“All patients who have been transferred abroad are currently in stable condition. We hope it stays that way and that we will receive positive news from abroad,” Taravari said.

Officials said 10 people remain in police custody for questioning in Kocani, some 115 kilometers (72 miles) east of the capital, Skopje. Interior Minister Panche Toshkovski added that a preliminary inspection revealed the club was operating without a proper license. He said the number of people inside the club was at least double its official capacity of 250.

Condolences poured in from leaders around Europe as well as from the office of the hospitalized Pope Francis.

People wait in lines to light candles in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub early Sunday. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

Women cry and hug outside a hospital in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub early Sunday. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

Late Sunday, Kocani’s residents held a candlelight vigil in support for mourning families, waiting in long lines to light church candles.

Girls cry as they light candles in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub early Sunday. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

People hug as they wait in lines to light candles in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, Sunday, March 16, 2025, following a massive fire in the nightclub early Sunday. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

Beti Delovska, an economist from Skopje, said North Macedonia has never experienced a tragedy like this, with dozens of young people vanishing in minutes. And she noted that many young people with bright futures had already left the nation, in search of opportunities elsewhere.

”(North) Macedonia is on its death bed,” Delovska said. “We have no more credible institutions, the health system is completely dismantled, education is poor, judiciary is partisan and corrupted to the bone. … I do believe now that only God can save (North) Macedonia.”