Sadness and anger

Sadness, crying, silence and anger - these are the images on the streets of Kočani, a town in the east of North Macedonia, after the fire in the nightclub that broke out during the concert of the hip-hop band DNA on the night of March 15-16, in which at least 59 people, mostly young people, died, and more than 155 were injured.

"Our town is dead, we will hardly recover from this. We are a small town, there is hardly a person who has not been affected. We all know each other. We are all crying, no one says anything, they just nod their heads, express their condolences," Stojan Gluvčeski, a resident of Kočani, a town of about 15000 inhabitants, told "Vreme".

His son could have been in the "Puls" discotheque where the fire broke out, but when he and his girlfriend reached the door, they saw that it was too crowded and decided not to enter. It saved their lives.

photo: armin durgut / ap photo

WHO IS TO BLAME

The fire broke out in the night between Saturday and Sunday, March 15 and 16, and according to the first findings of the investigation, it was caused by sparks from pyrotechnic devices used for light effects during the performance of the DNA group.

Panče Toškovski, the Minister of Internal Affairs of North Macedonia, said after the tragedy that there were about 500 people in the "Pulse" discotheque in Kočani at the time of the fire, and that 250 tickets had been sold.

"Macedonia is crying today, but there will be responsibility for everyone who is corrupt, irresponsible and everyone who has a direct or indirect influence on the occurrence of this criminal-legal event," said Toškovski after the tragedy. The investigation showed that the club operated with a forged license, without meeting basic safety standards.

Ljupco Kocevski, the state prosecutor of North Macedonia, stated that "the discotheque did not have hydrants, a sufficient number of fire extinguishers, enough exits for evacuation, as well as access from both sides for firefighters. This is evidence of the erosion of the system." As part of the investigation, twenty-three people have been suspected so far, and the Minister of the Interior announced new arrests.

The mayor of Kocan, Ljupco Papazov, submitted his irrevocable resignation.

"This loss is huge," said Papazov. "Those children were our children. I knew most of them, I knew their families. I ask all relevant institutions to investigate the responsibility of everyone involved! If there is any basis for my responsibility, let them prosecute me. After this tragedy, nothing has the same meaning for me."

The identification of the victims is ongoing.

THEY HAVE JUST BEGAN TO LIVE

Most of the victims in the discotheque were between 14 and 25 years old.

"They just started living. It is very difficult. There are many dead, it is not known if many of the injured will survive. Many families will have a hard time bearing this. Unfortunately, something like this had to happen in order to carry out controls now. The story is over, those children are no longer there," Stojan Gluvčeski, visibly shaken, told "Vreme". "It is very difficult for all of us. I think that the injured are in a much worse condition than when they were admitted to the hospitals. They were breathing toxic air. Unfortunately, it is now also shown that the roof is made of cancerous boards that contain asbestos, and I am afraid of what will happen next. There will be consequences for the health of the survivors."

Protests are being organized throughout North Macedonia, and sadness and anger have descended on the people of Kočani. At the protest held in that place on the evening of Monday, March 17, a restaurant was destroyed, and cars were broken in front of the delivery company of the owner of the discotheque, according to the locals of Kočan. Cars in front of the municipality building were also damaged, and at the protest it was heard that "corruption kills". Demonstrators threw eggs and stones at some institutions.

There are a lot of police in Kočani these days, and local resident Biljana Paunova describes the situation as tense.

photo: armin durgut / ap photo

"It would be terrible if the protests turn into something that shouldn't happen, and an even bigger tragedy occurs. It's tense, it's tense. People are revolted, angry and sad. Documents are being checked, for which it's too late now, it should have been done earlier," she told "Vreme".

None of her relatives were killed or injured, but the children of acquaintances and neighbors were. The people of Kočani have only days of sorrow ahead of them, and all the victims from that place should be buried in the same plot at the city cemetery.

photo: miloš milivojević / tanjug

SHAMEFUL VUČIĆ'S PICTURE WITH THE INJURED

Those injured in the fire were transported to hospitals in North Macedonia, but also in Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey, and Poland. President Aleksandar Vučić, accompanied by Minister Zlatibor Lončar, doctors from the clinic, as well as numerous journalists and photojournalists, visited severely injured patients in intensive care at the University Clinical Center of Serbia on Monday (March 17). Cameras pointed at Vučić and the patients in the shock rooms also appeared on his Instagram page. Some patients are undergoing intensive treatment and their lives are in danger, which is why Macedonians reacted furiously on social networks. "Vučić does not want to discriminate, so both Serbs and Macedonians are for political (mis)use," one of them wrote on the X social network. Another wrote that "Vučić is taking pictures while the children are crying, trembling with pain."

The interlocutor of "Vremen" Stojan Gluvčeski says that it is nice that the president expressed his condolences and went to the hospital, but that all this was possible without the entourage of photojournalists and journalists. "That's already politicking," concludes Gluvčeski.