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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
World
Stuti Mishra

More than 100 people evacuated after fire in luxury skyscraper in Argentina

A view of the building after dozens of people were evacuated from the 50-story apartment building that caught fire at Puerto Madero in Buenos Aires - (AFP via Getty Images)

More than 100 people were evacuated after a fire broke out in a luxury residential tower in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires.

The blaze broke out around noon on Tuesday on the 11th floor of the building and spread through several floors, emergency services said.

Alberto Crescenti, head of Buenos Aires emergency services, told local media the fire had "extended all the way to the 15th floor".

Responders said broken glass was falling from the building.

"Luckily, it was a very fast evacuation, meaning people are not at risk," he said. The cause of the fire is not yet known.

Diego Coria, chief of the Buenos Aires City Police Fire Squad, told reporters that the fire started in a mechanical room housing the building's air conditioning units.

"This space has ceiling vents, which allowed the fire to spread to other floors," he explained.

Forty people were treated for smoke inhalation and several others were admitted to hospital before the blaze was controlled.

The 50-floor building called the Renoir Tower II, is the highest residential building in the city and is located in the exclusive neighbourhood of Puerto Madero.

A 1,884sqft (175sqm) apartment in the tower is valued at more than $1m, according to La Nacion, a daily newspaper based in Buenos Aires.

More than 30 emergency units responded to the scene, along with firefighters and local police.

Firefighter Christian Benitez told AFP news agency all the residents were out of danger.

"I heard the fire alarm and came downstairs as quickly as I could," Ornella Gril, 30, told AFP outside the building.

Mariano Pavone, an ex-footballer who played for Argentine giants River Plate and Spanish club Real Betis, who lives in the building, told Noticias Argentinas news agency: "I saw smoke and went down with my son and my dog.

"Luckily nothing happened to my flat. I'm anxious for my neighbours. Luckily it was just a scare,” he said, according to BBC.

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