How 232 young people died at a nightclub in Brazil

Injured people are taken to hospital. Photo: Rollingstone

Scene of the fire where 232 young people died. Photo: Rollingstone

Santa Maria, BRAZIL - They dressed up and prepared for an enjoyable night with their mates but little did they know that they would be dead within hours. What started as another exciting night out at the Kiss Club in Brazil soon the death scene of 233 students, mostly university undergraduates aged 16 to 20. Soon after they arrived, the popular nightclub, Kiss was engulfed in flames and poison smoke which this quickly suffocated club revelers in the early hours of Sunday. 

So, what went wrong?

Eye witness reports state that the club was packed full when a music artiste got on stage to perform. Part of the act was to light up fireworks. The fireworks were lit and then exploded. The fire spread rapidly to nearby flammable material and then to the ceiling which was filled with foam to soundproof the club. The fire got out of control so fast that fire extinguishers handed to the band were not adequate.

As the fire spread, the revelers tried to flee. There was a stampede as they all tried to get to the main doors but many were blocked from fleeing because the security guards were unaware of how serious that fire was.  Security staff stopped revelers from leaving checking to make sure they had paid for their drinks before leaving.
Many of the victims then tried to find other exits and hundreds ended up running into the toilets and were later found dead by Firefighters.

When it became clear to people outside that hundreds of young people were trapped inside the club, they tried to break the walls to help rescue them. 

Brazil has announced a three days of national mourning and preparations for the World World have been cancelled. 

Brazilian police have arrested three people in connection with a fire at the nightclub.