10 die in Paris fire

PARIS — Paris’ deadliest fire in over a decade killed at least 10 people Tuesday as flames engulfed a nine-story apartment building, sending residents to the roof and clambering across balconies to escape.

A 40-year-old woman who lived in the building and is said to have a history of psychiatric problems was arrested nearby and held on suspicion of having set the fire. Neighbors said they heard the suspect and her neighbor, an off-duty firefighter, arguing over the woman’s music before the fire broke out.

Police responding to the argument stopped by the woman’s apartment. The firefighter and his girlfriend told officers they were leaving to sleep elsewhere in peace and thought the neighbor had lost her mind, according to Fire rages through the top floors of a nine-story apartment building in Paris on Tuesday morning. the police report.

A police report shows the suspect was detained after she allegedly tried to torch a car. She was placed in a police infirmary to undergo medical exams.

In an interview with Le Parisien newspaper, the 22-year-old firefighter said he returned to the building a few minutes later, shortly after midnight, hoping the woman had gone. Instead, he ran into her in the stairwell, which was already beginning to smell of smoke.

“She wished me good

luck, telling me that I loved flames,” he recalled.

Another resident later told him the woman put paper and wood in front of his apartment door, the firefighter — who did not give his name — told Le Parisien.

“I want to salute the huge mobilization of the Paris firefighters,” Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said. “More than 250 people arrived immediately and, throughout the night, saved over 50 people in truly exceptional conditions.”