On Thursday, eight people died in a large fire that broke out in a structure believed to be used as a shelter by homeless people in Brno, Czech police said.
Six men and two women were killed in the fire engulfed several mobile cabins near a residential complex in Brno, the second largest Czech city, police said.
The initial investigation suggests that the cabins were trapped inside, unable to find their way out because of heavy smoke.
According to the owner, the building was empty as of yesterday afternoon, but homeless people were using it as a shelter to sleep in, police said.
The cabins were used as a tent for construction workers in the past, but have been abandoned for some time. The police said the structure was slated for demolition and that the people who were caught in the blaze entered the building without permission. The Fire Rescue Service of South Moravian Region said the fire has been extinguished as of Thursday morning.
This is a huge human disaster that can't leave anyone untouched. Big thanks to the firefighters who bravely fought the flames, Brno mayor Mark Va Vakov said in a statement.