'11 pensioners dead' as fire sweeps care home

At least 11 elderly residents are feared dead following a fire at a care home today, fire services said.

Strathclyde Fire Brigade was called to the blaze at the Rosepark home in Uddingston near Glasgow at 4.37am.

More than 40 firefighters extinguished the blaze and a spokesman confirmed that there were "a large number of fatalities".

Alan Forbes of Strathclyde Fire Brigade said at least 40 people were in the home when the fire broke out in one wing.

"The fire was well alight when the firefighters arrived," he said. "Fire crews were at the scene within five minutes of the alarm being raised."

The two-storey, 43-bed Rosepark Nursing Home opened in 1992 in New Edinburgh Road, Uddingston. A spokesman for North Lanarkshire Council, which registers the home, said it was owned privately.

It cares for people on a short stay and long stay basis as well as offering day care, respite care and care of the terminally ill and people with mental conditions. Fees range between £415 and £425 per week.

The chief executive of the National Care Homes Association, Sheila Scott, said the home was not one of its members. She added: "It is any care home's worst nightmare. We have no idea what has happened but you can imagine a fire in the middle of the night at a care home full of people, some of whom probably can barely walk."