British Macedonian who lost family friend to club blaze does not expect justice

The fire which broke out in the early hours of Sunday in Kocani, North Macedonia, has left 59 people dead and 155 injured.

The exterior of a nightclub in North Macedonia where 59 people died in a fire — Police officers investigate a nightclub after a massive fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia (AP)

A British Macedonian who lost a family friend in a deadly nightclub fire has said he does not expect justice as he likened the tragedy to the blaze at Grenfell Tower.

Nick Nasev, 49, a translator from London, said he went into “panic mode” when he first heard about the blaze as he has many relatives who live in Kocani, North Macedonia, where the tragedy took place.

The fire broke out at Club Pulse in the early hours of Sunday during a DNK concert, a popular hip-hop duo in the country.

A man smiling — Nick Nasev has relatives living in Kocani, where the tragedy took place (Paul Smith/PA)

It tore through the nightclub leaving 59 people dead and 155 injured from burns, smoke inhalation and being trampled amid a bid to escape towards the building’s single exit.

People as young as 16 were among the casualties, and the nation has declared seven days of mourning.

Mr Nasev, whose father grew up in Orizari, a suburb of the town of Kochani, has many relatives still in the area including all of his father’s cousins and their children and grandchildren.

“At first I thought that one of my cousin’s daughters would have been at the disco as she is 16-years-old,” Mr Nasev told the PA news agency.

“My immediate family and I started trying to get in contact with relatives in the Kochani area but no one was responding.

“Word then got around that my cousin’s teenage children had been to the DNK performance at Club Pulse and that they were missing.

“Since this morning, it’s been confirmed that they had not gone to the concert after all and are all safe.”

However he discovered the 19-year-old granddaughter of his father’s friend lost her life in the fire.

“Her passion had been for Macedonian folk dancing and she was an active member of the neighbourhood’s folkloric ensemble,” he said.

Authorities have said they are investigating allegations of bribery surrounding the nightclub that was crammed with young revellers and at double capacity.

“Like in most places around the world, venues like this disco are fire traps,” Mr Nasev said.

“Entertainment venues such as discos, cafes, reception centres are the most profitable businesses in the region, particularly considering the limited means the local population has.

“The proprietors of such venues tend to have some clout over the local authorities, allowing for them to cut corners.”

North Macedonia’s government has ordered a three-day inspection to be carried out at all nightclubs across the country, starting on Monday.

North Macedonia Nightclub Fire — A woman writes a condolence message for the victims of a nightclub fire in the town of Kocani (AP)

Mr Nasev said while he does not expect anyone to be prosecuted for the fire he hopes it will bring greater attention to fire safety in Macedonia.

“No one has been prosecuted for Grenfell, so why should we expect the same for Kocani?” he said.

“People in Kocani aren’t expecting much will come out of this, though there is hope that this will bring greater attention to fire safety and the need for stricter implementation and controls on fire safety in Macedonia.”

Interior minister Panche Toshkovski said 15 people had been detained for questioning after a preliminary inspection revealed the club was operating without a proper licence.

He said the number of people inside the club was at least double its official capacity of 250.