Three dead in Italian hotel fire
A fire broke out at a luxury hotel in the Italian capital early today, killing an American and two Canadians, fire officials said.
News reports said police were questioning two people, believed to be foreigners.
The fire broke out before dawn in a room on the third floor of the Parco dei Principe hotel near Rome’s Villa Borghese park, said a fire official.
One man, believed to be the American, threw himself from the window of the hotel and died, the official said.
Two other people, a Canadian couple, were found dead in their room, he said.
The blaze spread to other rooms on the floor, forcing the evacuation of the hotel’s guests.
The ANSA news agency said two young people, believed to be Americans, had been taken in for questioning by police.
It quoted a third floor guest, Antonello D’Arielli, as saying he had seen the two leaving room 305 – where the blaze originated – shortly after the fire alarm rang.
ANSA said the two had apparently returned to the hotel at around 5am and were drunk.
The fire official said he had no information on the report.
