Six people were killed in a fire that broke out in a nursing home in Andrasevac, in the northern Krapina-Zagorje County, on Saturday morning. Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and Minister of the Interior Davor Bozinovic visited the site, where Plenkovic expressed condolences to the victims' families and confirmed that an investigation was under way.

The fire in the nursing home, located in Andrasevac near Oroslavje, broke out in an auxiliary building of the home around 5 a.m.

Firefighters arrived at the scene quickly and the fire was put out around 6.30 a.m. They then started cooling the facility so that the police could go inside and carry out an investigation.

PM Plenkovic expressed his deepest condolences to the victims’ families, adding that one should wait for the competent services to complete their job.

Asked if the tragedy should result in stricter inspections of nursing homes, Plenkovic said:
“Everyone will get involved – both county bodies and the competent ministry to see if inspections should be more frequent.”

County Prefect: Nursing home ‘Green Oasis’ has an operating permit for fewer residents

Following the accident, Krapina-Zagorje County Prefect Zeljko Kolar said that the ‘Green Oasis’ nursing home was issued an operating permit for fewer residents than were in the facility during the fire.

Speaking to reporters in Krapina, he said police informed him that 26 residents were in the home in Andrasevac at the time of the tragedy.

Martina Gregurovic Sanjug, head of the county health department, said the home was issued with a permit in 2012 for eight residents and for another five in 2013.

She said the county was authorised to issue an operating permit when a facility met the minimum technical requirements, while the rest was within the remit of the relevant ministry, including business inspections.

She said there had been no complaints about the work of ‘Green Oasis’.

Minister says counties issue operating permits for private nursing homes

Demography Minister Vesna Bedekovic extended her condolences to the families of the victims. Asked by the press in Andrasevac if the nursing home had the necessary operating permits, she said this was a private facility and that such facilities obtained such permits from the counties.

Asked if an inspection team from her ministry had ever checked “Green Oasis”, she said there had been no complaints about the home.

She announced that her ministry would put present a new social welfare bill “very soon”.

Asked about the lack of quality staff in private homes, Bedekovic said this was up to the management of the home.