Fire at nursing home in Chile kills 16 residents

At least 16 elderly residents have died in a fire at a nursing home in Chile, according to authorities.

Ten others were evacuated after a blaze broke out at El Edén home in Pitrufquén, around 640km (400 miles) south of the capital Santiago, on Friday evening.

Jorge Granada, a prosecutor leading the case, said it was not clear at this stage what caused the incident.

Chile's President José Antonio Kast said he had ordered a review into the condition of nursing homes across the country.

"We will fully collaborate with the justice system to clarify what happened, determine where failures may have existed in oversight or prevention, identify what alerts were raised and what actions were taken in response to them," Kast said.

"We need to know the truth and, based on that, correct whatever is necessary to do everything possible to prevent a tragedy like this from happening again," thre president added.

The fire, which began at around 22:30 (01:30 GMT) was finally put out on Saturday morning.

On Saturday, firefighters were still clearing debris and removing collapsed corrugated metal roofing. Police cordoned off the area for safety.

"It is a situation that fills our souls with great sorrow and pain. We have been... providing support to the families," said local mayor Jacqueline Romero.