Details are emerging of the site of the multiple fatality hostel fire in Wellington this morning.
Firefighters were called to Loafers Lodge on Adelaide Rd, in Newtown, about 12.25am.
The lodge describes itself as accommodation that would suit both short-term and long-term visitors.
It has been used as an emergency housing supplier before, but property manager Marie Murphy told 1News that — while the accommodation is still on the emergency housing list — they've been unable to provide any for more than a year.
She said that many who currently live there are shift workers.
The lodge is only a short distance from Wellington City Hospital.
Murphy said earlier that there are 94 rooms available, with only one lift, and around 92 people live there.
She was unsure if they were all staying in the building when the fire broke out.
Rooms can go up to $300 per week, and while they are private, Loafers Lodge has shared kitchens and common areas on every floor.
Multiple people have died in the blaze at Loafers Lodge on Adelaide Rd in Newtown. (Source: Breakfast)
'It doesn't get worse than this'
Fire and Emergency NZ District Manager Nick Pyatt called the incident "a worst nightmare".
"So far, 52 people have been accounted for from the building, with a number of people still unaccounted for," he said.
"I can sadly report that this will be a multi-fatality incident.
"It doesn't get worse than this for our people."
He called the incident a "once-in-a-decade fire for Wellington".
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