Witnesses have described standing helplessly and paralyzed by the horror of people screaming for help or jumping out of windows as flames tore through a 12-story hotel at a popular ski resort.

Dozens of people were killed after a fire ripped through a ski resort hotel in northwestern Turkey on Tuesday, forcing desperate holidaymakers to leap from windows to escape from the flames and smoke.

A tragic fire occurred at the Kartalkaya ski resort in the northwestern part of Turkey. The death toll has risen to 76 people, including entire families and many children. A national day of mourning has been declared in the country.