13 die in nightclub fire in Spain

At least 13 people have died in a fire that engulfed three nightclubs in the south-eastern Spanish city of Murcia.

The blaze broke out in the Fonda Milagros nightclub - known as La Fonda – early this morning.

Spanish Police say it then spread to neighbouring clubs as patrons rushed to escape the packed dancefloors.

Local media reported that family members celebrating a birthday were among the dead.

Police have confirmed that all of those who died were at La Fonda, but added 14 people were still unaccounted for.

They warn the number of deaths would probably rise.

Nearly 18 hours on, it is still not clear what caused it but Murcia's Mayor Jose Ballesta has told reporters that the fire had broken out on the first floor of the club.

A 28-year-old woman sent a voice note to her mother when the fire had started, according to the La Verdad de Murcia newspaper, saying: "Mummy, I love you, we're going to die."

She had gone out with her partner and some friends from the nearby town of Caravaca de la Cruz. It is not clear if she survived.

This is believed to be the country's worst nightclub fire in more than 30 years. In 1990, 43 people were killed in a blaze in a venue in Zaragoza.

Source: BBC