Translated automatically by AI from the Italian original.
TRIESTE – A dramatic fire broke out overnight in Trieste inside the Porto Vecchio area. The Fire Brigade responded urgently to tackle the flames that had engulfed warehouse 18, a disused building often used informally as shelter by homeless people and migrants. During the complex firefighting and search operations through the rubble, rescue teams found the lifeless bodies of two people, a man and a woman, on the first floor.
The Fire Brigade operation, supported by police and 118 medical staff, ended shortly after dawn with the area fully secured and the building made safe. Investigations at the scene ruled out any other casualties in the fire.
How it happened and initial findings: floor collapse and fire trap
According to initial reconstructions by investigators and Fire Brigade technicians, the blaze is believed to have started from a fire lit inside the building for warmth or cooking. The intense heat from the flames caused a partial floor collapse, trapping the two victims under the debris with no chance of escape.
Rescuers only located the two charred bodies after the main fire hotspots were extinguished and the smoke began to clear. The building has been placed under seizure to allow investigations and the official identification of the bodies.
Institutional reactions and city solidarity
The governor of Friuli Venezia Giulia, Massimiliano Fedriga, commented on the incident, expressing his condolences. The tragedy has caused deep emotion in the city: a solidarity and remembrance demonstration titled “Flowers and Anger” has been organised for this afternoon in piazza Libertà by local associations to highlight the housing emergency and the reception conditions for vulnerable people along the Balkan route.
