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Police probe fatal Thai nightclub fire
Source: Agencies |
January 3, 2009, Saturday
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GRIEVING families prayed for the spirits of their loved ones yesterday while police probed the cause of a fire that ravaged a Bangkok nightclub, killing about 60 New Year's Eve partygoers.
Interior minister Chavarat Charnvirakul said that the blaze could further damage the country's image, recently battered by months of anti-government protests that climaxed in the weeklong shutdown of the capital's two airports.
Police Major General Jongrak Jutanont said investigators were focusing on whether the fire was sparked by a countdown fireworks display organized by the club owners or by firecrackers brought in by guests.
Chavarat said that poor enforcement of laws -- including those related to safety -- was a major problem in Thailand.
"It's about the lax law enforcement which we need to strengthen," he told reporters while visiting victims at Chulalongkorn Hospital. "An accident like this can happen everywhere and in every country. But I really don't want this to happen because it came from carelessness."
The fire broke out shortly after midnight and raced through the jammed two-story club, trapping many as they tried to flee through one main door.
An Austrian woman who survived the blaze told the Austria Press Agency yesterday that she watched in horror as "people were simply trampled underfoot."
Nicole Trau said her group initially thought the fire was part of the festivities.
"At the beginning, it was really small, and we thought it was part of the show," Trau, who escaped injury, was quoted as saying. "But then it started looking extremely hot and we knew something wasn't right. Within minutes, the entire upper floor was in flames."
No charges related to the fire have yet been filed, but the owner, Thai-Chinese businessman Wisuth Setsawat, was initially charged with allowing underage customers into the Santika Club, Jongrak said. A 17-year-old high school student was found among the dead, he said.
Families of victims gathered at the gutted, charred club in a Bangkok entertainment district to take part in Buddhist prayers, beseeching the spirits of the dead to make their way back home.
Jongrak said that 21 bodies, burned beyond recognition, have yet to be identified.
He said that an investigation into the club's history found that its application for operation five years ago was turned down by the metropolitan police because the building "wasn't ready." But the club opened anyway on the basis of a court appeal.
"Even now, the court still hasn't issued a ruling," he said.
"Everybody was pushing against each other trying to get out to the front door as quickly as possible," said Sompong Tritaweelap, who lives in an apartment behind the nightclub. "I saw people, particularly young girls, being pushed away and crushed underneath as others were stomping on them trying to get out."
Sompong said the fire spread through the entire building within 10 minutes.
Interior minister Chavarat Charnvirakul said that the blaze could further damage the country's image, recently battered by months of anti-government protests that climaxed in the weeklong shutdown of the capital's two airports.
Police Major General Jongrak Jutanont said investigators were focusing on whether the fire was sparked by a countdown fireworks display organized by the club owners or by firecrackers brought in by guests.
Chavarat said that poor enforcement of laws -- including those related to safety -- was a major problem in Thailand.
"It's about the lax law enforcement which we need to strengthen," he told reporters while visiting victims at Chulalongkorn Hospital. "An accident like this can happen everywhere and in every country. But I really don't want this to happen because it came from carelessness."
The fire broke out shortly after midnight and raced through the jammed two-story club, trapping many as they tried to flee through one main door.
An Austrian woman who survived the blaze told the Austria Press Agency yesterday that she watched in horror as "people were simply trampled underfoot."
Nicole Trau said her group initially thought the fire was part of the festivities.
"At the beginning, it was really small, and we thought it was part of the show," Trau, who escaped injury, was quoted as saying. "But then it started looking extremely hot and we knew something wasn't right. Within minutes, the entire upper floor was in flames."
No charges related to the fire have yet been filed, but the owner, Thai-Chinese businessman Wisuth Setsawat, was initially charged with allowing underage customers into the Santika Club, Jongrak said. A 17-year-old high school student was found among the dead, he said.
Families of victims gathered at the gutted, charred club in a Bangkok entertainment district to take part in Buddhist prayers, beseeching the spirits of the dead to make their way back home.
Jongrak said that 21 bodies, burned beyond recognition, have yet to be identified.
He said that an investigation into the club's history found that its application for operation five years ago was turned down by the metropolitan police because the building "wasn't ready." But the club opened anyway on the basis of a court appeal.
"Even now, the court still hasn't issued a ruling," he said.
"Everybody was pushing against each other trying to get out to the front door as quickly as possible," said Sompong Tritaweelap, who lives in an apartment behind the nightclub. "I saw people, particularly young girls, being pushed away and crushed underneath as others were stomping on them trying to get out."
Sompong said the fire spread through the entire building within 10 minutes.
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