At least 10 people killed during the fire of a building in Paris

The most serious fire in Paris for more than a decade has claimed the lives of 10 people by forcing residents to rush onto the terrace as the flames engulfed their building Tuesday morning.

A 40-year-old resident with a history of mental disorder was arrested in this case, described as a deadly arson causing death. Authorities said she was drunk when she was stopped in the street near the eight-story building of a residential neighborhood.

This is the deadliest fire in Paris since April 2005, when the flames ravaged a hotel near the Opera House and killed 24 people.

The Minister of the Interior, Christophe Castaner, who attended the event, congratulated the firefighters for their great mobilization. "More than 250 people arrived immediately and during the night, they saved more than 50 people in truly exceptional circumstances," he said.

Firefighters saved people on the deck or went out of the windows to escape the fire.

Castaner said that the fire, which started on the second floor, was extinguished and about 30 people were treated for relatively minor injuries.

"I heard a woman yelling in the street, crying and asking for help," said Jacqueline Ravier, who lives on the other side of the street. According to his story, he saw a young man blackened by smoke and a woman motionless on the floor. The flames burned for hours in the upper part of the building and the victims, covered with smoke, fled.

Surprised residents were transferred to their building and next door while firefighters fought the fire, he added. "We noticed the smoke, it's amazing how long it has lasted," he said.

The building is located rue Erlanger, in the 16th arrondissement, one of the quietest of Paris. It is near the famous Bois de Boulogne Park, one kilometer from the courts of Roland Garros and near the Parc des Princes Paris Saint-Germain, the largest football team in the country.

More than 200 firefighters and rescuers worked on the site, said the Paris police, and the street was closed. Neighboring properties have been evicted. This was to support the building badly damaged by the flames.

Among the wounded were eight firefighters, reported the body.