Witnesses say guests at a ski resort hotel in Turkey tried to escape a deadly fire with ropes and sheets hung from windows.

A fire at a 12-story hotel at a popular ski resort in northwestern Turkey on Tuesday killed at least 66 people, Turkey's Interior Minister said. Ali Yerlikaya said at least 51 other people were injured in the disaster that struck the Grand Kartal hotel in the resort of Kartalkaya,

The fire in the 12-story hotel was reported at 3:27 a.m., and the fire department began to respond at 4:15 a.m., a government official said.

A fire at the Grand Kartal hotel in Turkey's Kartalkaya ski resort killed at least 66 people and injured 51 others, with investigators probing the cause as guests reported issues with the fire alarm and the rapid spread of flames.

Turkey’s interior minister says a fire that broke out at a hotel at a popular ski resort has killed at least 66 people.

In a hotel fire in Turkey, 79 people died. The fire reportedly started in the hotel's restaurant kitchen. According to Turkish media, many people were poisoned with carbon monoxide while trying to escape through emergency stairways.