The fire brigade were called to a total of 94 incidents related to the lighting of Easter bonfires, known as “lambradjies”, overnight, spokesman Andreas Kettis said on Sunday.

He said there were a total of 139 fires recorded between midday on Saturday and midday on Sunday, with 42 of those in the Nicosia district, 15 in the Limassol district, 29 in the Larnaca district, three in the Paphos district, and two in the Famagusta district.

In addition, he said, the fire brigade was called to one fire in the early hours of the morning caused by a lit candle.

He said the fire brigade were notified of the fire at around 2.43am and arrived on the scene to find a fire in the kitchen on the second floor of a block of flats.

He said the fire “destroyed kitchen equipment”, while the rest of the apartment was affected by smoke.

The flat’s resident was taken to hospital as a result of smoke inhalation.

Earlier, news had broken that a 22-year-old man had been fatally injured on Saturday afternoon while helping construct a lambradjia in the Nicosia suburb of Strovolos.

The police said a “large pole” fell from the pile of wood and other materials being stacked on top of each other, hitting the man and killing him.