Tragic Blaze in Nice: Suspected Arson Claims Seven Lives

Seven people, including three children and their mother, perished in a suspected arson attack on a seventh-floor apartment in Nice. Acting Prime Minister Gabriel Attal stated that the investigation is progressing, with a search underway for three individuals. The fire investigation is spearheaded by prosecutor Damien Martinelli.

Seven people, including three children and their mother, died early on Thursday in what authorities suspect was an arson that devastated a crowded seventh-floor apartment in a building in Nice, the largest city on the French Riviera.

Acting Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, who travelled to the area, told reporters the investigation was making progress and that a search was on for three individuals. He did not provide further details.

The fire started around 3 a.m. (0100 GMT) and spread so quickly through the apartment that only those near the windows could be saved, Hugues Moutouh, the local representative of the interior ministry, told TV station BFM. The fire killed one man, a teenager, two women, and three children, he said. One victim jumped from the window tied to a mattress, he added.

'The family's mother went to take her children to safety beside the window and then went back into the blaze to get her three little ones and never came back,' he told reporters. City's prosecutor Damien Martinelli opened an investigation into a possible voluntary and criminally motivated fire.

'I will have to give more elements on the investigation later, but we are starting with an arson,' he said. The city mayor, Christian Estrosi, said people wearing balaclavas were spotted by CCTV footage in the area.

The building is located in the Moulins neighbourhood, an area of run-down social housing towers, similar to many 'banlieues' in France.

(With inputs from agencies.)