Bucharest march commemorates four years since Colectiv nightclub fire
Hundreds of people took part on the evening of October 30 in a commemorative march meant to mark four years since the 2015 Colectiv nightclub fire, which left 65 people dead.
The participants, carrying candles, started in Unirii Park and marched towards Şerban Vodă Bridge - Splaiul Unirii- Bucur Street – Bucur Square. Upon reaching the site of the former Colectiv club, people lit more candles and said prayers. Survivors of the Colectiv fire and the families of those who lost their life in the fire were among the participants.
Some of those attending the march also carried a large banner requesting the resignation of Raed Arafat, the head of the Emergency Response Department (DSU).
Another march to commemorate the victims of the fire was held in Braşov, in central Romania. People gathered in front of the city’s Administrative Palace, where the Prefecture and the County Council are located, and in Sfatului Square.
The fire at the Colectiv nightclub fire broke on October 30, 2015. Some 400 young people were in the club at the time, attending the release of the latest album of Romanian band Goodbye to Gravity. The fire started at 22:30 and killed 27 people only that night, injuring many more.
The fire exposed the weaknesses of the local healthcare system. A media investigation showed that many of the people who died after the fire have been killed by aggressive germ infections they developed in the Romanian hospitals. It also led to the resignation of then prime-minister Victor Ponta, a few days after the event.
The case recently returned to public attention after a video showing showing the uncoordinated intervention of the firefighters at the scene of the Colectiv fire was leaked to the media. The 20-minute video has been kept hidden even from the authorities and prosecutors investigating the case. It shows chaos, lack of organization and even lack of preoccupation for the victims, a totally different image than the official one presented by the DSU head.
The release of the video also raised the question of the authorities’ preparedness for a similar event. At present, there are 23 hospital beds for adult burn victims in the country, and another 10 are available at the Grigore Alexandrescu Children’s Hospital, health minister Sorina Pintea said, quoted by Mediafax.
