Y2024-01 Hostel fire leading to three fatalities in Äkäslompolo, Kolari on 13 February 2024

A hostel fire broke out in Äkäslompolo, Kolari on 13 February 2024. The hostel building was destroyed in the fire, and three of the 28 people staying in the hostel died after being trapped in the burning building.

In the previous evening, the tour operator’s group had gone on a northern lights excursion where a campfire had been lit. The remains of the campfire were removed from nature in a plastic storage box, which was put in an unheated storage space of the hostel building at the end of the excursion. At night, the box caught on fire, and the blaze spread rapidly to the building’s structures and external surfaces. The fire had spread significantly before it was detected inside the building.

The building was constructed for residential use in the 1950s but, over the years, began to be used increasingly for tourism accommodation instead of being used as a residence. Alterations were made on the premises accordingly by increasing the area of the premises and changing room arrangements. However, in converting the premises, the personal safety risk was not always addressed, and the emergency exit safety of the upstairs accommodation was significantly reduced as a result of the changes.

Fire safety requirements were not taken into account in the activities of public authorities. No comprehensive assessment of the impacts of the changes on personal safety was made in the processing of building permits. The building also did not become subject to regular supervision by the rescue authorities, as the information on the intended use of the building was incorrect in the fire inspection system, and the correctness of the entries in the system was not systematically checked. Information on changes in accommodation activities was not fully communicated from the health authority to the rescue department.

The risks of northern light excursions have been assessed to be minor and do not require a permit from the authorities. The safety of tourism activities relies on the service provider’s own risk management. While materials are available for the safety management of tourism activities, they do not always reach tourism service providers whose activities are low risk activities.
Smooth cooperation between the authorities in accident situations is emphasised in sparsely populated areas. Accidents involving a large number of tourists require planning and training. There were no cooperation plans for the accident.

As a result of the incident, there would have been a need for psychosocial support after the acute phase. There was no plan for the provision of support, and the transfer of responsibility for the provision of crisis work to healthcare professionals was unsuccessful.

The Safety Investigation Authority recommends that:

• the Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency (Tukes) as the authority responsible for supervising tourism activities update the safety management guidelines for activity and experience services as a whole to also provide the prerequisites for ensuring the safety of low-risk tourism activities. It should additionally be ensured that this information can also be accessed by foreign operators.
• the Ministry of the Interior ensure that information on accommodation activities in a building reaches the local rescue authority in a timely manner, making it possible to target supervision work.
• Metsähallitus create uniform, effective and safe practices for handling ashes, especially in nature tourism.

Please note that the Finnish version of the investigation report serves as the official version. All other language versions are unofficial translations.