Ten children were among the 56 people killed in a blaze in a Hanoi high-rise, police said Thursday, which some residents desperately tried to escape by jumping out of upper stories, according to witnesses.

As the fire spread, people on higher floors got increasingly desperate and Pham Thu Hang, a pharmacist who lives across the street, said that many began to jump. “We brought out mattresses and blankets as cushions for people to jump down, but many were panicked and they jumped regardless,” she said. “Some landed on neighbors’ hard roofs. I could hear the thudding sounds. Jumping out would give a better chance to survive than being trapped inside.”