October 30 is a sad day for Romania as on this day in 2015 a fire ended the lives of dozens of young Romanians who went to a concert in Bucharest's Colectiv club.

A total of 64 people lost their lives after the fire, and their memory is to be kept alive with a monument that will be erected in the small square located in front of former Colectiv club. The event will take place on Sunday, October 30, 2016.

“We don’t want people to forget what happened on October 30, 2015, the 64 young people who left us shouldn’t be forgotten. This monument was necessary because, as long as people remember what happened then, they will try to avoid any actions that could lead to such tragedies in the future,” said Eugen Iancu, founding member of the Colectiv GTG 3010 Association, cited by local Mediafax.

The names of the 64 victims will be carved at the base of the monument. The cost amounts to some EUR 70,000, with around EUR 48,000 coming from Bucharest’s District 4 Council, and the rest from donations.

The Colectiv GTG 3010 Association will also organize a 3-day charity festival for the Colectiv fire victims this weekend. The event, called #3010 Festival, will take place at Beraria H in Bucharest, from October 28 to October 30. Read more about it here.

Moreover, thousands of people are to participate at a silent march to be organized on Sunday, October 30, in Bucharest. According to the presentation of the Facebook event called Silent march for Colectiv, people will gather in Universitate Square in downtown Bucharest and will go from there to the former Colectiv Club where they will light candles and lay flowers, and will hold a minute of silence. Some 3,500 people appear as attending the event, and other 7,400 are interested in it.

President Klaus Iohannis also announced that he would participate in some of the events organized to commemorate the Colectiv fire victims.

The fire at Colectiv club represents one of the greatest tragedies Romania faced in the recent history. The fire occurred during a concert of Romanian rock band Goodbye to Gravity, organized to celebrate the group’s new album. Some 400 people gathered in the club that night.

At around 22:30, one of the club’s pillars caught fire from one of the on-stage fireworks. According to the experts report, everything happened quite fast from that point, the fire burning for only 2.5 minutes.

In late-April this year, the General Prosecutor’s Office has concluded the investigation into the Colectiv club fire. Several people are being investigated in this case, including the club’s owners.

Looking back at 2015: Colectiv, the Romanian tragedy that has changed laws and people

Discovery makes documentary about the Colectiv club tragedy in Romania

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com