Bangkok bar fire kills 30, victims found trapped in bathrooms
Thirty people died after a Bangkok music bar fire trapped most victims in windowless bathrooms near a rear exit, turning an escape into a dead end.
Most of the 30 people killed in the Bangkok music bar fire were found trapped in windowless bathrooms near a rear exit. The blaze tore through Rong Beer Na Lat Phrao, a live music bar and restaurant in Chatuchak district, shortly before midnight on Sunday, July 13, and Bangkok officials brought it under control in about 30 minutes.
The death toll climbed in stages from at least 27 to 28 and then to 30 after three injured people died in hospital. More than 70 people were hospitalized, including 24 in critical condition, while at least 32 others had been treated and discharged. Relatives gathered at the Police Hospital morgue to identify the dead as Bangkok authorities opened a support center for victims and families.
Thai police are investigating the fire as a possible negligence case and are examining whether emergency exits were obstructed, whether doors had been locked, and whether flammable materials in stage decorations or soundproofing helped spread the flames. City officials initially suspected that an electrical short circuit in an air conditioner on the ceiling may have sparked the blaze.
Survivors described a sudden blast, thick smoke and panic inside the bar. One witness escaped only because she had stepped outside for a smoke moments earlier and recalled that there was “no way out at all.” Another survivor described the crowd as having “no way out.”
The fire was Bangkok’s deadliest in 17 years and Thailand’s deadliest blaze since the Santika Club nightclub fire on New Year’s Eve in 2009, which killed 67 people. Bangkok’s governor vowed stricter inspections after the fire.
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