Expert: Pulse had zero compliant evacuation exits; alterations were carried out illegally

An expert witness at today’s hearing on the nightclub fire that killed 63 young people and injured more than 200 said the Pulse venue had zero compliant evacuation exits and that alterations to the building had been carried out illegally.

Expert: opening that guests used was a narrow choke point

Marijana Lazarevska, a construction expert from the Faculty of Civil Engineering, told the court that although the space appears to have three apertures at first glance, that does not mean there were safe evacuation routes. On the fatal night visitors had to leave through a so‑called double-leaf folding door that was not an evacuation door at all but a narrow bottleneck.

“Imagine a situation in which 600 visitors must simultaneously leave the room on fire. All of them are directed toward a single opening whose width is two and a half times smaller than required. In that way, the opening becomes a bottleneck on the only evacuation path. In conditions of fire, a smaller width of the opening does not only mean slower evacuation. It can lead to some people becoming trapped in the danger zone and failing to leave the building in time,” Lazarevska said.

The expert testified that the interventions carried out on the building further reduced its throughput and worsened conditions for timely and safe evacuation. According to Lazarevska, Pulse did not meet the criteria to be classified as a cabaret and should have been treated as a disco club; the changes implemented were reconstructions and were performed unlawfully.

She added that the only document resembling project documentation could not be regarded as a primary, legally required design and lacked the statutory phases. That document was never submitted to the municipality but was used in procedures before the State Market Inspectorate and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Materials installed without professional supervision and quality control, such as polyurethane foam, negatively affected the development and spread of the fire.

“Additionally, the materials installed, without professional supervision and without appropriate quality control, like the polyurethane sponge, had a negative influence on the development and spread of the fire and further worsened conditions in the room. The fire started precisely from the sponge placed on the ceiling. It is a highly flammable material that burns fast and allows flame and fire to spread quickly across the entire ceiling surface,” Lazarevska said.

Parents of the victims said they “will not accept anything less than the truth,” and the construction report has given them renewed hope that justice can be achieved. “The knot is unravelling, and responsibility is increasingly tightening. After 17 months of pain and struggle, hearing the construction expert today, we see even more clearly all the omissions and failures that accumulated for years. As painful as it is to hear, all this gives us hope that the truth is finally coming to light,” said Aleksandar Naunov, father of the deceased Nadica.

The testimony of construction experts will continue at the next hearing.

Photo: press material from the event