A collective funeral is being prepared in Kočani; Day of Mourning in Serbia and Republika Srpska PHOTO/VIDEO

The youngest victim is 14 and the oldest is 25. It has been confirmed that there are three minors among the victims.

The mayor of KočanI was interrogated

The mayor of Kočani, Ljupčo Papazov, who submitted his irrevocable resignation, was interrogated.

As reported by Skopje's Telma TV, Papazov gave certain clarifications and information to the authorities during the hearing and, for now, he is not among the suspects.

The Basic Public Prosecutor's Office announced that his statement will be compared with the evidentiary material and the jurisdiction of the municipality, after which a decision will be made on Papazov's further status in the process of determining responsibility for the outbreak of the catastrophic fire.

All patients who were brought to Serbia have life-threatening injuries

"All the patients have severe, life-threatening injuries. Of them, three are on ventilators, that is, they require mechanical ventilation. The body surface affected by burn injuries ranges up to 25%. I emphasize that all of them have symptoms of intoxication and burns of the respiratory tract, and are therefore life-threatening. After admission, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures were started. Of them, seven were taken care of in the conditions of the operating room," Prof. Dr Milan Stojičić, director of the Clinic for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, KCS for RTS.

Consultation examinations by neurosurgeons, ENT specialists, pulmonologists, as well as radiological examinations are also ongoing.

"All of them were taken care of during the night, they are stable, with stable vital parameters. As for the patients operated on the previous day, they are hemodynamically stable, their treatment continues, which will certainly take a long time," the doctor pointed out.

Of the first nine patients who were transported from North Macedonia to KCS, seven were cared for in the first wave in the operating room.

One patient was in serious condition and on a ventilator, and his general condition was unchanged - he is still in serious general condition.

The first nine patients are currently on the program with interventions that still need to be done. Today, they continue to be bandaged in the operating rooms and the plan is that they will be operated on in the coming days.

"Some will be treated conservatively, and others operatively. And that operative treatment is already planned for tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. We will have detailed information today because today we are evaluating the candidates for operative treatment. If there is a need for skin donors, we will inform you about it," said Prof. Dr Stojicic.

Day of Mourning in Serbia

The Day of Mourning has begun in Serbia due to the tragedy that happened in North Macedonia.

A total of 29 people are being treated in Serbia

Last night, 12 more injured people were transferred to Belgrade for treatment.

Four of them will be hospitalized at the VMA, and eight at the University Clinical Center, Dr Igor Nikolov, the contact person for all information regarding the condition of patients abroad, confirmed to the Macedonian MIA.

A total of 29 patients have been transferred to Serbia so far.