11 dead in Mexico bar fire after one man was kicked out
Eleven people, including a 17-year-old and a female American citizen, died in a fire after a man was arrested for throwing a Molotov cocktail at a beer house cantina bar in San Luis, Mexico, after being evacuated from the premises, authorities said Saturday.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of arson near the Arizona border in the Mexican state of Sonora.
Mexican authorities said the suspect, whose name has not yet been released, was removed from the Beer House Cantina Bar in San Luis Rio Colorado, Mexico early Saturday morning for being disrespectful to female patrons.
The Sonora attorney general’s office said the unnamed man, who was “highly intoxicated,” returned and threw a Molotov cocktail at the bar, which triggered the incident.
The devastating fire broke out at 1:33 am on Saturday and claimed 11 lives overnight.
A 17-year-old American woman was also among the dead.
A man kicked out of a Mexican bar and set it on fire, killing 11 people, according to investigators
The fire broke out at 1:33 a.m. Saturday and police took an unidentified suspect into custody
The name of the American teenager has not been released.
Footage from the scene showed the building engulfed in flames as firefighters battled to contain the carnage. The building is located in San Luis Rio Colorado, which is on Mexico’s border with Arizona.
At a news conference Saturday, Sonora’s attorney general, Gustavo Romulo Salas Chavez, said the main suspect was being questioned.
Among the 11 dead, four are women. A total of six people were injured in the fire.
Yuma Regional Medical Center in Arizona received three patients, one was hospitalized and the other two were released.
Three others were sent to other US hospitals for treatment.
The medical center issued a statement saying, ‘Our hearts go out to the victims and families affected by his tragedy.’
Beer House Cantina Bar in San Luis Rio Colorado quickly went up in flames. The bar is located along the Mexico-Arizona border
Eleven people were killed in the deadly fire, which authorities said was started deliberately
Firefighters eventually put out the blaze that left 11 dead and six injured
The father-in-law of one of the victims, Aurelio Herrera, told KYMA: ‘They told us there was no emergency exit, only one door and it was blocked.
‘Someone threw a Molotov bomb and the fire was quickly extinguished.
‘You have no idea, he was my son-in-law of course I’m very sorry,’ added Herrera.
The names of other casualties have not been released. The building sustained significant damage and was cordoned off with police tape on Saturday afternoon.