KIEV: Four people died in Ukraine after a fire tore through the intensive care unit of an infectious diseases hospital that was treating coronavirus patients, police said Thursday. It was the latest in a spate of deadly fires in Ukraine, which are not uncommon in the ex-Soviet republic due to poor compliance with safety regulations and ageing infrastructure.

The fire broke out just before midnight on Wednesday on the ground floor of the five-storey building in the southwestern city of Zaporizhzhya.

Footage released by the emergency services showed firefighters entering the smoke-filled building in darkness and carrying out bedridden patients.

"The fire killed four people, including a medical worker," regional police said in a statement.

Three of the victims had been diagnosed with coronavirus and were on ventilators, according to the regional governor quoted by the Interfax-Ukraine news agency. Firefighters were able to save eight people.