Two patients from North Macedonia at "Pirogov" hospital have been extubated, doctors are optimistic about their prognosis

Two patients from North Macedonia at "Pirogov" emergency hospital in Sofia have been extubated, and doctors are optimistic about their prognosis. This was reported by the Minister of Health of North Macedonia, Dr. Arben Taravari, who, along with the Minister of Health of Bulgaria, Prof. Dr. Silvi Kirilov, and the foreign ministers of both countries—Georg Georgiev from Bulgaria and Timcho Mutsunski from North Macedonia— on March 18 visited the people injured in the fire in the nightclub in Kočani, who are currently being treated at "Pirogov" emergency hospital in Sofia.

• What is the condition of the injured from Kocani nightclub fire, admitted for treatment in hosptals in Bulgaria?

A total of 15 patients are being treated in Bulgaria: 9 at "Pirogov" in Sofia, 3 in Varna, and 3 in Plovdiv. The ninth patient, the sister of one of the victims, was admitted today after the director of the hospital, Valentin Dimitrov, spoke with her and noticed that she also had injuries from the fire. In Sofia, the ministers met with the medical teams responsible for treating the nine victims of the tragic incident.

Dr. Arben Taravari, the Minister of Health of North Macedonia, thanked Bulgaria for its assistance:

Dr. Arben Taravari - Minister of Health of North Macedonia:

"Minister of Health Silvi Kirilov was the first health minister to call me, and I received calls from more than 15 health ministers from the region and other friendly countries to North Macedonia. I would like to thank the Prime Minister of Bulgaria, who has been in regular communication with our Prime Minister. Out of the nine patients being treated at 'Pirogov,' two have been extubated, which is a positive sign. According to the doctors, they have a huge chance, a very good prognosis, and they will return healthy, standing on their own feet back in Macedonia. I thank the entire Bulgarian nation for its solidarity. The extubated patients are 15 and 31 years old. There is a high chance that tomorrow, two more will be extubated."

Assoc. Professor Silvi Kirilov, Bulgaria's Minister of Health:

"On Sunday we were notified that we needed to provide assistance to the Republic of North Macedonia. As physicians first and foremost, in addition to preparing to be healers, we prepare for situations like this. Yesterday I signed thank you notes to those involved. It's important to me because we've noticed their contributions to this process. We did a timely evacuation of these injured children and they were placed in Bulgarian medical facilities. We did not hesitate about whether we would help or not. Our first reaction was how to organise the evacuation as quickly as possible. I'm grateful to the colleagues who carried out this evacuation."

Minister Kirilov explained that if a request is made, they are prepared to organize the evacuation of 10 more patients.

"We are more than good neighbours; we put all our knowledge and skills into helping these injured children," he added.