Five evacuated from Athens hotel fire, more people trapped inside

Fire fighters evacuated five people from a hotel in southern Athens where a fire broke out on Thursday morning, while more people were believed to be trapped inside, the fire brigade said in a press release.

Initial information indicated that the blaze started from a room of the Athenaeum Palace hotel, which is located on main Syngrou Avenue in the district of Neos Kosmos, state-run broadcaster ERT reported.

Authorities did not clarify whether the people evacuated were guests or hotel staff, but said two of them were found in the hotel's stairway, while the other three were rescued from the windows using a crane.

Photos and short videos posted on news websites showed smoke billowing from several windows of the third, fourth and fifth floors of the building, as firemen tried to douse the flames.

The fire service has dispatched 12 vehicles and 35 men at the scene.