Three killed from fire at hotel in heart of Bangkok, says Bangkok governor

[toenail]

Centura!!???One of the wealthiest companies in Thailand and they do not have their own small fire unit of trained staff volunteers/ appointees that could make an attempt  to stop the fire from spreading....& what about the fire sprinkler system? (We all know that answer.)

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

JS 100 now seems to be reporting a tally of 2 dead and 16 injured:

 

http://www.js100.com/en/site/post_share/view/70973

 

The BKK Post in their 7:30 pm update also is reporting 2 dead, both reportedly employees at the mall.

 

Also saying the mall has been ordered closed pending an investigation into the cause of the fire and "the effectiveness of its fire suppression system."

 

[Kinnock]

21 minutes ago, toenail said:

Centura!!???One of the wealthiest companies in Thailand and they do not have their own small fire unit of trained staff volunteers/ appointees that could make an attempt  to stop the fire from spreading....& what about the fire sprinkler system? (We all know that answer.)

I believe that it was the Central fire team who put out the fire before the fire trucks arrived.  I was walking along the skywalk just after the smoke and flames had stopped, and the fire trucks and ambulances were still stuck in the traffic 500 meters from the entrances to Central World.

 

[Just Weird]

3 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

Some horrible images on the Thai news of guys jumping out of high rise window to escape the flames. On the TV before the blurring guys edit.

One person was killed jumping so did some of "those guys jumping out of high rise window to escape the flames" survive the eight storey jump?

[Just Weird]

2 hours ago, Pravda said:

 

Nah, it's a valid point. Don't buy third world real estate in a third world country. Centara is a 5 star hotel. 

 

10 year lifespan on most condos in Thailand.

It wasn't a valid point, neither was your comment valid, this is about Thailand and Thailand is not a third world country.  "10-year lifespan on most condos in Thailand"?...nonsense.

[NCC1701A]

Latest is 2 dead 17 injured.

[Kinnock]

I was impressed to see the car park staff helping direct traffic in the smoke-filled parking area, but isn't a bit odd there was a fire in B1 of Central World parking and on the 8th floor of the hotel?

 

Perhaps the ventilation ducts are connected, but these two areas are not close.

[webfact]

Latest : Two killed from fire at hotel in heart of Bangkok, says Bangkok governor

By The Nation

 

 

A fire broke out at Centara Grand@CentralWorld Hotel at Bangkok’s Ratchaprasong Intersection on Wednesday afternoon, killing three and injuring seven others, said Bangkok Governor Aswin Kwanmuang

 

Flames and smoke from the blaze at a documents storage room on the eighth floor of the hotel was visible from a distance, sending people dashing to the hotel’s parking space in panic to get their cars out.

 

The incident worsened the already heavy traffic in the intersection, which was also crowded by bystanders.

 

Pathum Wan Police Station was alerted about the fire at 5.49pm, but police officers, firefighters and water trucks found it difficult to get to the area due to the traffic. CentralWorld shopping mall and Centara Grand@CentralWorld are situated in Bangkok’s business district and are always crowded.

 

Pinit Arayasilapathorn, director of Pathum Wan district, said in a television interview earlier that the fire broke out on the eighth floor of the 55-storey hotel.

 

He added that the fire was small and brought under control quickly, but a staff member terrified by the blaze jumped out the window and died. Two others members of staff sustained some injuries.

 

However the Bangkok governor revealed later that the death toll of the blaze were three. One died at the scene and two others were pronounced dead at a hospital.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30367491

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-04-11

 

 

*WARNING GRAPHIC FOOTAGE*

 

 

 

 

 

[dutchweller]

I was there when that place burned during the riots..

Let's just day the fire suppression systems  are lacking...

Also every car was stripped and burned by looters last time so I guess people remembered that...

Most Thais put property over life... 

 

[Peterw42]

8 hours ago, Just Weird said:

One person was killed jumping so did some of "those guys jumping out of high rise window to escape the flames" survive the eight storey jump?

According to the news last night, yes, one guy died and one guy jumped and did survive but in critical condition. Has probably now passed.

[Vacuum]

11 hours ago, notasmartassknowitallfarag said:

So sad seeing that person jumping...they must have been petrified in that thick black smoke. 

 

The fire engines took ages to get there because of traffic. What an absolute disgrace.

 

What will change in the future? Because there will be more fires..

Well, they tried to clear up Khao San road beause of this, but...

[AlQaholic]

fire started in a document storage room, aka, smoke room...

[justin case]

no sprinklers in this fancy place ?

[Benmart]

Horrible.

[fruitman]

I heard the fire started in the vent duct from the foodcourt in the mall...guess they had a fire in one kitchen which got sucked into the hood and spreaded there inside the ducting canals?

 

So those ducting canals go into the hotel? That's weird innit?

[postal]

Looking at this video, we can be glad that the majority got out save:

 

https://youtu.be/jLP_L_A7mA4?t=84 

 

There was no panic, as the fire and smoke was not so visible to the shoppers. Everybody used the exit they know or that they used to come in, ignoring the signs for the emergency exits. If time would have been be more pressing, this could have been Station club fire no. 2.   ????

 

This is not a Thai issue, I have observed this at other places too. In an emergency, use the tools available, alarms, emergency exits... And do it yourself, do not wait for someone to tell you. It saddens me that people die because of such simple things.

[webfact]

UPDATE:

 

Fire at hotel in Bangkok: Workers and patrons speak of confusion and no fire alarms

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1094561-fire-at-hotel-in-bangkok-workers-and-patrons-speak-of-confusion-and-no-fire-alarms/

[hotchilli]

So no sprinkler system then.. just wait for the fire service to arrive who are stuck in the traffic jam up the road?

[pogal]

Firefighter friend at scene told me smoke detector didnt go off and sprinklers didn't go off (although I heard the sprinklers are manually controlled by management in case if false alarm or someone playing around)

 

our own (nameless) school has disconnected fire/sprinkler buttons around the school in case kids play with them. 

Not sure who's responsiblity it is to turn them on. We asked but no response from management a year ago. 

I suspect majority of condos, schools, etc have done the same thing. Very worrying.

[seancbk]

14 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

Some horrible images on the Thai news of guys jumping out of high rise window to escape the flames. On the TV before the blurring guys edit.

 

Some guys?   Don't you mean one guy.

[tingtong]

very sad, and totally unnecessary deaths. a relative small fire should be no major problem to be taken out with the locally available resources, by the staff members.

 

the effective hotel ranking

5* hotel + 3 death from faulty fire system = 2* hotel?

[gunderhill]

14 hours ago, moe666 said:

Where are they suppose to go when it is bumper to bumper

You can always make room

[raccos21]

Poor safety features for such a expensive hotel.

[Bangkok Barry]

15 hours ago, SammyT said:

Sprinkler systems not working is always a concern of mine when I stay at some of the older hotels Thailand has to offer.

 

This is a new build. But hey, why have sprinklers in a room full of paper/documents. Everyone knows paper doesn't burn.

 

This reminds me of when what is now the Intercontinental Hotel caught fire. It happened on the day before the building was due to open when an air-conditioning unit exploded (Thai installation skills). The law demanded that all new buildings of the type had to have a sprinkler system installed, and it did. But there is no law that it must be turned on. Guess whether the system was turned on. Maybe the same thing happened this time. After all, imagine the damage and cost if the system went off.

 

The fire back then spread to many floors and people were airlifted off the roof by helicopter to the nearby police hospital. Dramatic stuff that I witnessed, and there are (or were) pictures of it all adorning a corridor in the Bangkok Post building.

[SammyT]

2 hours ago, postal said:

Looking at this video, we can be glad that the majority got out save:

 

https://youtu.be/jLP_L_A7mA4?t=84 

 

There was no panic, as the fire and smoke was not so visible to the shoppers. Everybody used the exit they know or that they used to come in, ignoring the signs for the emergency exits. If time would have been be more pressing, this could have been Station club fire no. 2.   ????

 

This is not a Thai issue, I have observed this at other places too. In an emergency, use the tools available, alarms, emergency exits... And do it yourself, do not wait for someone to tell you. It saddens me that people die because of such simple things.

 

People who stick around filming just to get views for their youtube channel drive me nuts. Granted all these people weren't in a heap of danger at that point, fire spreads quick, and idiots like the guy filming this video don't help things. He should have fallen in with the others and got out of there.

[Huckenfell]

15 hours ago, madmen said:

what country would you buy in that doesn't have fires? This is no place to discuss real estate, show some respect

In Australia all this type of building has to have fire escape and sprinklers which are subject to regular inspection an certification.

[fouryesrs]

17 hours ago, SammyT said:

The video of all the people trying to drive their cars out is somewhat beyond the stretch of my logic. Just evacuate the damn building on foot. All those cars flooding the streets nearby would cause even more chaos. 

Terrible loss of life. Sprinkler systems not working is always a concern of mine when I stay at some of the older hotels Thailand has to offer. 

its nice to stay in upper floor...you have a nice view a bit of extra wind etc...but if a fire hits you are the mouse in the trap...stay lower floor check emergency stairs ( there is always an extra stairway to exit fast even if high up...) make sure the door is not locked...if it is demand to ope nit...if they refuse just move to another hotel...Death in this case was because of overreaction..as I read tge fire was out in less than half hour...but fumes can kill u in a much shorter time..

[fouryesrs]

2 hours ago, Huckenfell said:

In Australia all this type of building has to have fire escape and sprinklers which are subject to regular inspection an certification.

all the hotels where I stayed till now had one or two extra staircases...marked as emergency staircases ...

[DrTuner]

A five star hotel is it? When was the sprinkler system last time checked? Were the fire doors functional? Will heads roll? 

 

TiT - I'll give it 99% chance nothing changes.

[Fex Bluse]

17 hours ago, moe666 said:

Where are they suppose to go when it is bumper to bumper

Here's what Koreans often do. Japan is even better. 

 

 

The Thais are similar to the Chinese.