Homeless man sought over Phuket Town building fire

By Eakkapop Thongtub

 

Firefighters took just 15 minutes to douse the fire. Photo: PR Phuket

 

PHUKET: Firefighters are investigating a blaze that saw a commercial building catch fire in the heart of Phuket Town last night (Jan 9), with a homeless man using the back of the building as a shelter as the prime suspect.

 

Phuket City Municipality firefighters were called to the three-storey commercial building, located near the Lan Nawamin public area on Phuket Rd, at about 10:30pm.

 

Firefighters arrived to find the back of the  building covered with flames.

 

Source: https://www.thephuketnews.com/homeless-man-sought-over-phuket-town-building-fire-78607.php

 

-- © Copyright Phuket News 2021-01-11

 

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(from the link above)

"However, local residents also reported that a homeless man had been seen regularly using the back of the building as a shelter, where he was protected from wind and rain on three sides.

It is believed that the man, estimated to be 55-60 years old, may have inadvertently started the fire by leaving a candle or lit incense unattended."

 

Seems fairly unlikely to me that a single candle outside a shophouse (presumably concrete) could ignite the building so easily?

Perhaps he's an easy scapegoat.