| Title: | All about Scandinavia |
| Moderator: | TLE::SAVAGE |
| Created: | Wed Dec 11 1985 |
| Last Modified: | Tue Jun 03 1997 |
| Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Number of topics: | 603 |
| Total number of notes: | 4325 |
Associated Press Fri 05-SEP-1986 07:19 Norway-Hotel Fire
Hotel Caledonien fire Kills 14, 19 hospitalized, others injured, fire
under control
KRISTIANSAND, Norway (AP) - Fire raged through an 11-story hotel this
morning, killing 14 people and injuring many of the 121 people
evacuated down ladders and by helicopter, police said. One of the
victims jumped to his death from a window of the Hotel Caledonien, the
Norwegian news agency NTB reported.
Between 50 and 60 hotel guests were taken to a hospital, but most were
treated and released, police spokesman David Stamnes told national NRK
radio. Nineteen people were still being treated for shock and injuries,
he said, adding that the fire had been brought under control.
"Some guests panicked. Some were screaming out of open windows,"
36-year-old Arne Gudem of Stavern, one of the survivors, said on the
radio. "I escaped by balancing on a cornice outside my window to reach
a ladder."
Two hundred people, including 60 soldiers, fought the fire and helped
rescue the guests, Stamnes said. The effort was complicated by heavy
smoke, he said.
The dead included 11 Norwegians and three Swedes. Their names were
being withheld pending notification of relatives. Everyone inside the
hotel when the fire broke out was accounted for.
Hotel Caledonien opened in 1969. It is owned by the Kosmos Group and
has 205 rooms and 350 beds.
| T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 133.1 | Memorial service | TLE::SAVAGE | Neil, @Spit Brook | Sat Sep 06 1986 15:56 | 31 |
Associated Press Sat 06-SEP-1986 10:38 Norway-Hotel Fire
Memorial Mass Held For Hotel Fire Victims
KRISTIANSAND, Norway (AP) - A memorial mass was held today for the five
women and nine men killed in Norway's second-worst hotel fire, and
flags flew at half staff in this southern city.
Police said they don't know the cause of the fire that erupted Friday
in a bar on the ground floor of the 11-story Hotel Caledonian. A total
of 140 people were in the hotel at the time, and 126 of them were
rescued, authorities said.
Nine of the survivors, all Norwegians, were treated at an area hospital
for burns, smoke injuries and fractures, said police spokesman Frank
Timenes who heads the investigation. Scores of others were treated for
minor injuries and released. Fire Brigade Chief Terje Hansen said one
of the victims jumped to his death. The other bodies were found in
smoke-filled corridors, he said.
Police said four Swedes, one Canadian and nine Norwegians were killed
during the six-hour blaze that destroyed the 205-room hotel. Timenes
identified one of the victims as 70-year-old Norwegian painter Edvard
Vigebo who was to have opened an art exhibition in Kristiansand this
weekend. Timenes said the names of the other victims would not be
released until their relatives are notified.
The Hotel Caledonian was built in 1969 in this coastal city, 160 miles
south of Oslo. Norway`s worst hotel fire occurred in 1959 when Stalheim
tourist hotel burned down in western Norway, killing 25 American
tourists.
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