A fire at a bar in the city of Rouen, in France’s Normandy region, has left 13 people dead and six injured.
It was suggested that the deadly blaze may have started when a birthday cake was dropped, Sky News reported.
The basement of the Cuba Libre bar had been hired out for a birthday event when the fire took hold.
It is believed that someone carrying the cake tripped and fell down the stairs.
Sky News quoted local media, which said that the basement’s low ceiling ignited and suggested that because of sound-proof padding, the fire spread quickly through the room.
French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that More than 50 firefighters battled the blaze at the bar in the city centre, the Associated Press reported.
Of the six injured, one person remains in a life-threatening condition.
All those dead are believed to be between 18 and 25-years-old.
It is thought that many died from the fumes caused by the blaze.
An inquiry is now underway into the incident, Cazeneuve said.