site.btaInternational Conference on Institutional, Clinical Solutions One Year after Kocani Fire Held in Skopje

An international conference on the institutional and clinical aspects and solutions a year after the Kocani nightclub fire was held in Skopje on Saturday. Participating were high-ranking government officials, international experts, and medical professionals from North Macedonia and other European countries, including representatives of the Pirogov Emergency Hospital in Sofia. 

The tragic fire at the Pulse nightclub of March 16, 2025 took 63 lives and seriously injured over 200 people, mostly youths. The fire was caused by sparks from indoor fireworks during a concert. Many neighbouring and other countries helped with treating the fire victims, including Bulgaria, with 14 severely injured youths receiving treatment in Sofia, Varna and Plovdiv.

A year after the tragedy, North Macedonia holds a series of commemorative events, including church services, memorial prayers, marathons, a hiking march, a basketball tournament for those injured in the fire, and cultural performances. 

Opening Saturday's conference, North Macedonia's Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said that the tragedy in Kocani is one of those events in a country’s history that are not measured by time, but by the pain they leave behind. "Today we have gathered here with a sense of deep respect, but also with a strong sense of empathy. Respect for those who lost their lives. Respect for the families who bear the pain of loss. Respect for the victims, who have been fighting a courageous battle for recovery for a year now," he said, as quoted by MIA. "At the same time, we also bear a responsibility - to remember, to learn, and to take responsibility for creating systems that are stronger than the failures that lead to tragedies," he noted.

Kocani Mayor Vladko Grozdanov said, as quoted by MIA, that the assistance provided by other countries in treating the victims was extremely important. He underscored that no country could handle such a tragedy on its own, and without foreign aid, the death toll last year in Kocani would have been double.

Dr Valentin Dimitrov, Director of the Pirogov Emergency Hospital that treated some of the fire victims, told BTA after the conference that the most important thing is to be human, compassionate and help each other. He attended the forum together with the Pirogov Deputy Director for administrative activity and Prof. Maya Argirova, head of the Burns Unit at Pirogov. "During the conference, we reviewed everything that had been accomplished. We live in a world where an emergency can strike at any moment, requiring us to assist a very large number of people. Experience is shared during the forum; in our panel, we outlined how we responded - when providing assistance in such situations, we start with logistics, organization, and the movement of people, and the medical treatment process is part of all these actions for the people who need to be rescued," he explained.

"A year later, our assessment is that even though the Republic of North Macedonia was not prepared for such a tragedy, they responded quickly enough, and thanks to the good neighborly relations and the response of both the people and the institutions, the outcome has been positive," Dr. Dimitrov noted. "Of all the victims who were transported to Bulgaria, not a single one died; we managed to save their lives and continue their treatment and support so they could return to normal life. The psychological trauma will remain with everyone for a long time, but when you have done your job and done everything possible to minimize the number of victims, it is satisfying," he added. According to him, patients still come periodically for checkups at Pirogov Hospital, and their treatment continues.

"We see great gratitude in the eyes of the ordinary people here, which for me is the most important thing - this is the recognition every doctor deserves, and it touches him," added Dr. Dimitrov.

Closing the conference, North Macedonia's President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova said, as quoted by MIA, that nothing can ease the pain of the families who have lost their loved ones or are facing the aftermath of the tragedy, but "we can and must do everything in our power to ensure that such tragedies never happen again." A year later, she believes her country made the right political and medical decisions when it decided to seek outside assistance. In her words, the swift and intensive coordination between North Macedonia's institutions and the healthcare system, and its international partners made it possible to save many young lives. She added that she was deeply impressed by the humanity and solidarity of the neighbouring countries, the speed with which the EU Civil Protection Mechanism was activated, and the solidarity of the entire world.