Huge fire at lavish Turkey apartments as residents jump off balconies in panic

28 April 2023 , 02:16

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Residents could be seen jumping for their lives from balconies after the fire started (Image: Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Firefighters are currently in attendance at a raging blaze at a large residential building in Izmir province, Turkey.

Flames were reported to have engulfed the upscale Folkart condominium, located in the Narlidere district, late on Thursday.

Eyewitness reports said the fire broke out about 10:30pm, before quickly escalating across the entire structure, with residents seen jumping off balconies. The eight-floor building was said to be completely covered shortly after the fire initially started.

Video clips have shown the building engulfed by flames, with plumes of smoke billowing into the air.

The sleek, glass structure, fronted by individual balconies, showed the extent of the damage, as fire could clearly be seen raging up through the storeys to the roof.

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Firefighters have been working through the night to get the fire under control (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The entire left-hand side of the building was alight with glowing embers as crowds gathered from a safe distance to watch the blaze. Emergency vehicles were parked around the front of the building.

The entire building was quickly engulfed in flames (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Emergency services arrived at the scene to evacuate residents and water trucks were supplied by the local Directorate of Forestry in order to get the blaze under control. Police water cannon vehicles were in attendance, as well as Disaster and Emergency Management teams.

The glass and balcony-fronted property made it easy to see the spread of the fire inside the building (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Crews have been working on tackling the large-scale fire throughout the night. It is not clear how many teams have been deployed to the scene.

It has yet to be reported how the fire started and no statements have been made as of yet.

The amount of casualties have not been confirmed (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Izmir Governor, Selim Köşger, arrived at the scene of the fire. They confirmed that all residents, living in 40 different units in the building, were evacuated.

A statement has yet to be made about casualties or if there have been any fatalities, however it has been reported that residents were seen leaping from balconies and were subsequently rushed to hospital for treatment.

Sophie Goodall