Ycuá Bolaños supermarket fire
{{Short description|2004 disastrous fire at a supermarket in Asunción, Paraguay}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2016}}
{{Expand Spanish|Incendio del supermercado Ycuá Bolaños|topic=hist|date=November 2017}}
{{Infobox News event
|image = File:Super Ycuá Bolaños 01 08 2005.jpg
|caption = Entrance of the Ycuá Bolaños V supermarket on August 1, 2006, two years after the fire. Banners of protest demanding justice for the victims hang on the sides of the building.
|date = 1 August 2004
|time = 11:25 UTC-4 (15:25 UTC)
|place = Asunción, Paraguay
|coordinates = {{coord|25|15|24|S|57|35|02|W|region:PY_type:event|display=inline,title}}
|reported death(s) = 424
|reported injuries = 360
}}
The Ycuá Bolaños supermarket fire, also known as the Ycuá Bolaños Tragedy, was a major fire that occurred on 1 August 2004 in Asunción, Paraguay. After the fire broke out, exits were locked to prevent people from stealing merchandise. The building also lacked adequate fire protection systems. Over 400 people were killed and more than 300 were injured. The president of the supermarket company, as well as various employees, were later sentenced to prison terms for their actions during the fire.
==Background==
The Ycuá Bolaños V supermarket, located in the Paraguayan capital Asunción, opened on 7 December 2001. The two-story building consisted of an underground parking garage on the lower level and a sales area and food court on the second story. Two separate mezzanines contained administrative offices and an extension of the food court.{{cite web|last1=Álvarez|first1=Eduardo D.|last2=Moncada|first2=Jaime A.|title=El Incendio del Supermercado Ycuá Bolaños|url=http://www.nfpajla.org/~nfpajla/es/archivos/edicion-impresa/lugares-de-reuniones-publicas-discotecas/986-el-incendio-del-supermercado-ycua-bolanos|website=NFPA Journal Latinoamericano|access-date=January 15, 2018}}
According to the defense attorney of the building's owner, the bakery and food court kitchen were not properly ventilated, which caused smoke and gas to accumulate in the building.{{cite news|last1=Machain|first1=Andrea|title=Paraguay: a un año de la tragedia|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/spanish/latin_america/newsid_4728000/4728731.stm|access-date=January 15, 2018|work=BBC Mundo|date=August 1, 2005}} The structure also lacked a fire sprinkler system and the smoke detectors did not work.
Fire
The fire broke out on 1 August 2004, with two explosions on the first floor. As the fire came down the stairway from the main shopping area, the charge was so hot people were burnt to ashes and bones, and cars that were filled with gasoline started to combust and explode, causing shoppers to be burned by the subsequent explosions or suffocate due to the building's unventilated system inside. The fire burned for seven hours before firefighters were able to extinguish it. The final death toll was 424, and more than 300 injured.{{cite journal |last1=Balmelli |first1=B. |last2=Aquino |first2=O. |last3=Insaurralde |first3=M. |last4=Romero |first4=F. |title=Catastrophe in Asunción, Paraguay |journal=Annals of Burns and Fire Disasters |date=June 30, 2006 |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=95–98 |pmid=21991032 |pmc=3188037 |issn=1592-9558}} The cause was believed to be a faulty barbecue chimney that leaked hot flammable gases into the ceiling, which ignited.{{cn|date=July 2018}}
Several survivors of the fire and volunteer firefighters alleged that, when the fire broke out, doors within the complex were deliberately closed under the direction of the owners, Juan Pío Paiva and his son, Víctor Daniel, trapping people inside, in order to prevent people from fleeing with merchandise without paying for it. The management of the shopping center denied the charge.{{cite news |title=Blaze witnesses claim doors ordered shut |url=http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/08/02/1091298607415.html?from=storylhs |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=August 2, 2004 |access-date=April 19, 2013}} Paiva, his son and a security guard surrendered to the police and were formally charged.{{cn|date=February 2022}}
Aftermath
On 5 December 2006, Juan Pío Paiva, Víctor Daniel Paiva and the security guard were convicted of involuntary manslaughter with a maximum penalty of five years in prison. The prosecution however was seeking a 25-year prison term. As the verdict was read, angry survivors and family members of the deceased started a violent demonstration inside the courtroom, which later spread onto the streets of Asunción. The prosecution demanded a retrial.{{cite news |title=Violence erupts over Paraguay fire verdict |first=Daniela |last=Desantis |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-paraguay-fire-verdict-idUSN0543778820061205 |newspaper=Reuters |date=December 5, 2006 |access-date=April 19, 2013}}
{{Wikinews|Sentences handed down over Paraguay's worst fire}}
On 2 February 2008, a new court ruled that the trio committed negligent homicide. Juan Pío Paiva, president of the company, received a sentence of 12 years in prison. His son Víctor Daniel Paiva, present at the start of the fire, was sentenced to 10 years in jail. Security guard Daniel Areco, who closed the doors, was sentenced to 5 years in prison. Additionally, shareholder Humberto Casaccia, also present at the start of the fire, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison for endangering people in the workplace.{{cite news |title=Paraguay supermarket owners jailed after deadly fire |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2008-02-03/paraguay-supermarket-owners-jailed-after-deadly/1031284 |newspaper=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |date=February 3, 2008 |access-date=April 19, 2013}} Architect Bernardo Ismachowiez, who both designed and built the complex, spent two years under house arrest for "dangerous activities in construction".{{cite news |title=Confirman condena a constructor del Ycuá Bolaños |url=http://www.abc.com.py/nacionales/confirman-condena-a-constructor-del-ycua-bolanos-15410.html |newspaper=ABC Color |date=August 28, 2009 |access-date=April 19, 2013|language=es}} Both Víctor Daniel and Juan Pío were released on probation in 2013 and 2014 respectively, after a ruling from the Court of Appeals decided they were to serve the remainder of the sentence in liberty for good behavior.{{cite news |title=Confirman libertad a Paiva |url=http://www.abc.com.py/nacionales/confirman-libertad-de-juan-pio-paiva-1357652.html |newspaper=ABC Color |date=April 17, 2015 |access-date=October 6, 2020 |language=es}}
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ycua Bolanos supermarket fire}}
Category:2000s fires in South America
Category:August 2004 crimes in South America
Category:August 2004 in South America
Category:Fire disasters involving barricaded escape routes
Category:Commercial building fires
Category:2004 disasters in Paraguay