Fire Breaks Out At Retirement Home In Indonesia, 16 Killed

At least 16 people were killed when a retirement home in Indonesia’s Manado city on Sulawesi island was gutted in fire, police said on Monday.

Firefighters received the report of the blaze at 8:31 pm on Sunday at the Werdha Damai retirement home in the North Sulawesi provincial capital Manado, AFP reported.

Local media reports showed the fire blazing through the home while residents helping one of the elderly people escape from the building.

Indonesian police are conducting identification procedures for 16 people killed in a fire that broke out at a nursing home in Manado, the capital of North Sulawesi province. Police forensic teams have launched an investigation, including a crime scene examination and witness… pic.twitter.com/p0PENH6v58

— CCTV

Asia Pacific (@CCTVAsiaPacific) December 29, 2025

Reuters quoted police official Alamsyah P Hasibuan saying the fire at the nursing home was finally extinguished late on Sunday and authorities are still investigating its cause.

Jimmy Rotinsulu, chief of Manado’s fire department, told Metro TV that three elderly suffered burn injuries.

AFP quoted Rotinsulu saying many bodies of the victims were found inside their rooms and that many of the elderly residents were likely resting in their rooms in the evening when the fire broke out. The authorities were able to save 12 people, all unhurt.

Further details are awaited.