2 burnt to death, 1 missing in Lapland hostel fire

Two people were killed and another was missing in a fire at a hostel at Äkäslompolo area in Lapland early Tuesday night, police said in a press release.

The fire broke out at the Silver Fox hostel at about 12:30 am and engulfed the two-storey hostel immediately.

Responding to an alarm, rescue service people and police rushed to the spot and tried to bring the fire under control.

On-duty Lapland fire service Chief Tuomas Korhonen said that firefighters from Kolari, Äkäslompolo, Muonio and Sirka took part in the operation to douse the fire.

The firefighters recovered two bodies from the debris, but one person was missing till late Tuesday night.

Police, however, did not divulge the identities of the deceased and the missing person.

About 30 boarders of the hostel, most of them are tourists from the Central European countries managed to escape immediately after the fire.

The origin of the fire could not be known immediately. The rescue service authority, police and Safety Investigation Authority are investigating into the incident to find out the reason behind the fire.

The police started to interview the boarders and staff of the hostel to find out more information in this regard.