Zagreb, 20 March 2025 (Hina/MIA) — Macedonian Foreign Minister Timcho Mucunski has thanked Croatia for receiving five of the injured in the Kochani fire for hospital treatment and for the support and sympathy Zagreb has conveyed to Skopje following this tragedy that claimed 59 lives.

In the March 16 fire that tore through a crowded nightclub in Kochani during a concert, 59 young people lost their lives and over 150 people sustained serious injuries. Five burn patients have been transported to Zagreb for further hospital treatment.

"I am here as a representative of a country mourning the loss of 59 lives," said Minister Mucunski, in front of a Zagreb hospital where some of the five victims are being treated.

According to Mucunski, Croatia's authorities were among the first to offer condolences Sunday morning on the deaths of the 59 people as well as assistance in the treatment of burn patients.

Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman told the press in front of the hospital that Croatia was "shocked" by the Kochani tragedy and that it was "difficult to find words of comfort because the parents who have lost their children will carry this pain forever."

However, Croatia can show solidarity, "one of the most important components of aid – showing empathy towards a neighbor and a friend," Grlić Radman added.

He said Croatia offered help to North Macedonia "in the early hours of Sunday morning" and offered "everything it can provide," noting that helicopters from the Ministry of Defense were sent to transport the injured.

Health Minister Irena Hrstić said Croatia can provide "top-tier treatment, especially for patients with burn injuries."

She said the patients have been placed in a burn unit with "excellent and experienced staff" specialized in treating such injuries, and the patients were treated with "the most modern methods," which may potentially include transplants with the help of a tissue bank.

"Patients are in safe, expert hands. We wish them a safe recovery," the Croatian health minister said. ms/mr