Two dead and 10 injured in Madrid restaurant fire

The fire broke out late on Friday evening near the restaurant's only exit and spread quickly, according to the fire brigade.

Some of the guests fled to the back of the restaurant, where they could not escape.

As there was a fire station nearby, officers were soon on the scene and the fire in the Plaza Manuel Becerra was soon extinguished and the trapped people were freed, a spokesman for the fire brigade said. For two of them, however, it was too late.

An eyewitness told the newspaper El Pais that a waiter had accidentally set fire to some plastic flowers while flambeing a dish.

The flames spread fast and the smoke made it impossible to breathe, another witness was quoted as saying.