Footballers killed in fire

A fire swept through the sleeping quarters of an academy for Brazil’s popular professional football club Flamengo yesterday, killing 10 people and injuring three, most likely teenage players, authorities said. ‘‘We are distraught,’’ Flamengo president Rodolfo Landim said outside the complex in Rio de Janeiro, where friends, fans and neighbours had gathered. The cause of the fire was not known, but Claudio Castro, vice-governor of the state of Rio de Janeiro, said authorities were looking at the possibility of a short circuit in an air conditioning unit. The city said the area that burned was registered for parking, not as a dormitory.