Firefighters work at the site where a homeless shelter caught fire, killing at least 10 people, in Porto Alegre, Brazil
Firefighters work at the site where a homeless shelter caught fire, killing at least 10 people, in Porto Alegre, Brazil AFP

At least 10 people were killed Friday in a fire that broke out in a defunct hotel being used as a makeshift homeless shelter in the city of Porto Alegre in southern Brazil, officials said.

Emergency workers confirmed 10 victims at the site, which was operating without proper authorization, said the fire department for Rio Grande do Sul state, whose capital is Porto Alegre.

Mayor Sebastiao Melo wrote on X that multiple injured victims were rescued and taken to the hospital, but did not say how many. Local media reports put the number of injured at 11, some in serious condition.

"It happened very fast. People yelled 'fire!' When I saw it, it was already two doors from mine. I ran out as fast as I could, because there was already a lot of smoke," an unidentified resident of the building told news site G1.

The fire broke out around 2:00 am (0500 GMT), officials said. It took firefighters around three hours to bring it under control.

"Forensic experts are at the scene to identify the victims and investigate the cause of the fire," the fire department said in a statement.

An AFP photographer at the scene early Friday saw firefighters still at work around the badly charred three-storey building.

Images in Brazilian media from overnight showed the building engulfed in flames as firefighters battled to extinguish them.

State Governor Eduardo Leite vowed an investigation into the incident.

"The fire department dispatched five trucks and dozens of firefighters to fight the flames," he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

"We will continue working on the aftermath of this tragedy and the investigation of the causes. My condolences to the victims' families."

State lawmaker Matheus Gomes accused the city government of funding the homeless shelter even though it had faced reports of non-compliance with regulations "for years."

"There needs to be an investigation not only into the fire, but the entire chronicle of this tragedy foretold," he wrote on X.

The deadly fire comes 11 years after another in Rio Grande do Sul state. In 2013, 242 people were killed at the Kiss nightclub in the town of Santa Maria when sparks from a flare lit by a band during a concert ignited the ceiling.