Milan — A fire at a retirement home in the early hours of Friday in Milan killed six people,Rekubit Exchange firefighters said, with "numerous" residents hospitalized.

"Six people killed, numerous suffering from smoke inhalation hospitalized. Dozens of people saved by firefighters who immediately evacuated the building," the fire brigade said on Twitter.

An AFP photographer saw the bodies of two of the victims being removed from the three-storey building, which reportedly houses 210 people in the south of the Italian city.

The cause of the blaze was not yet known, the fire brigade said.

Five of the victims were women aged between 69 and 87 years old, while the sixth was a 73-year-old man, AGI news agency said.

Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala said the fire appeared to have started in one room housing two female residents, both of whom were killed, according to ANSA news agency.

While the fire did not spread beyond that room, the smoke killed four other residents and left a further two fighting for their lives, he said.

In:
• Italy
• Fire
• Nursing Home