At Least 11 Dead in Nursing Home Fire That Trapped Bedridden Residents

“People were burning… someone is to blame,” survivor says as officials call it “a disaster of enormous proportions.”

A late-night blaze tore through the upper floors of a nursing home in the Bosnian city of Tuzla Tuesday night, killing at least 11 residents — many of them elderly, disabled, or bedridden — and injuring more than 30 others, authorities said Wednesday.

The fire broke out around 8:45 p.m. local time on the building’s eighth floor, witnesses told local outlets. Within minutes, flames and thick black smoke engulfed the top levels of the home as residents screamed for help.

“I looked out the window and saw burning debris falling from above,” recalled resident Ruza Kajic, who lived on the third floor. “On the upper floors, there are bedridden people. They couldn’t move. I ran out into the hallway, but it was chaos.”

Police confirmed that firefighters, medical staff, and even the home’s own employees were among the injured. “We have 20 people currently being treated, including first responders,” a police spokesperson told the BBC.

Authorities have not yet determined the cause of the blaze, but officials said investigators would begin combing through the charred remains of the building once it was deemed structurally safe.

Outside the facility, families gathered through the night, desperate for word about loved ones. One distraught relative told the Bosnian outlet radiosarajevo.ba: “My father was on the sixth floor. I have no information whether he was injured or not. Someone is to blame for this.”

Others accused the home of neglect. “All sorts of things are allowed to happen in the retirement home,” one resident said bitterly. “People don’t follow the rules… people were burning.”

Bosnian Prime Minister Nermin Nikšić called the inferno “a disaster of enormous proportions.” In a post on X, the prime minister shared a somber photo of the scorched nursing home, simply captioned: “Tuzla — November 4, 2025.”

Local media reported that the victims were largely confined to their beds due to illness or disability, and many lived on the higher floors that were hardest to evacuate. Survivors from lower levels were rushed out by paramedics as smoke poured from the windows.

The nursing home issued a brief statement through Reuters, saying, “Authorities are taking all necessary actions to shed light on the conditions that caused this tragic event.”

By Wednesday morning, firefighters were still on scene cooling hot spots as rescue workers combed through the debris. Identification of the victims is expected to take place later in the day.

This tragedy marks one of the deadliest fires in Bosnia in recent years — a grim reminder of how vulnerable elderly care facilities can be.

As one exhausted rescuer told a local television station: “We pulled out who we could. But on those top floors, it was already too late.”

For footage of the aftermath and ongoing investigation, watch the BBC News report here.