Mountain B fire: Full extent of tragedy hits home in horrific story of Vietnamese lady "Nong Kim"

[webfact]

Sanook Thai Caption: Plea to help "Nong Kim"

 

An important story published by Sanook and translated in full by ASEAN NOW brings home the full extent of the tragedy that was last week's fire at the Mountain B pub in Sattahip.

 

It involves a seriously burned young lady from Vietnam who was saved from death by a brave Thai airman who died himself. 

 

And shows perhaps all that is good - and bad - in Thailand regarding the response of its people and medical services to such a monumental tragedy.

 

Apinya, 28, is a close friend of Dinh Kim Le, 25, who was severely injured in the fire.

 

She said her friend had been in the country for four years and the Vietnamese national would come and go to Thailand and was living in Sattahip.

 

She is a lively and attractive woman who can speak Thai clearly. 

 

Picture: Sanook

 

On the night of the fire last week Kim had called Apinya to invite her to the pub too, but Apinya said she would follow on later.

 

The next thing she heard about was the fire. She tried to contact her on the phone but there was no answer.

 

She rushed to Sirikit Hospital where she saw her dear friend in a pitiful state with 70-80% burns on her body on a gurney outside ER.

 

Medics were frantically running about as 10 terribly burned other victims were waiting in line for treatment. 

 

She described how her friend was screaming out in tortured agony.

 

Apinya asked a doctor if she could take her friend elsewhere and the doctor agreed so she took her in her own car to Bangkok Hospital Pattaya.

 

There she had to put a 50,000 baht deposit down before they would accept her friend for treatment. 

Throughout the next six days Kim was in a bacteria excluding bubble unable to be visited by friends.

 

Apinya was only able to watch the pitiable sight of her friend from behind glass as her eyes remained open while she was on a ventilator. 

 

Picture: Sanook

 

Tears rolled down the victim's face as she tried to raise her hand in recognition. She appeared to be trying to say something. 

 

In her time in the hospital she racked up a bill of 630,614.80 baht.

 

With costs spiralling out of control Apinya contacted her friend's brother who agreed to try and transfer her to a cheaper state hospital.

 

Ten hospitals refused to help saying they "wouldn't dare to treat her" according to Apinya.

 

Finally yesterday the Queen Savang Vadhana Merorial Hospital in Sri Racha accepted her.

 

Kim's family have paid the Pattaya hospital a further 150,000 baht of the bill there.

 

Apinya said she wants the owner of Mountain B to do more to help and pay the entire bill.

 

So far he has paid 10,000 baht which is obviously nowhere near enough.

 

Apinya noted that her friend is a foreign national so does not have the same rights to care as Thais.

 

Kim's elder sister in Vietnam has set up an appeal there. Kim's story has been headline news in her homeland but her story has not been told in Thailand - until now.

 

All Kim's friends are rallying round and there are plans underway to contact the Vietnamese embassy for assistance.

 

Apinya wanted in put on record the eternal gratitude of friends to the family of commander Phalitdech Chumngern of the Thai air force.

 

Phalit died after bravely pulling Kim from the flames and saving her life before he himself died in the tragedy. 

 

ASEAN NOW notes that "Sia B", the Mountain B owner,  has been released on bail in the sum of 300,000 baht and has paid 50,000 baht to victims for funeral expenses so far.

 

He faces charges of negligence causing death and not having a licence to operate a pub. 

 

This is the first story we have carried noting the amount of money given to an injured person. There are almost forty of those. There are at least 15 deaths though Apinya said Phalitdech was the 17th in the report by Sanook.  

 

"Sia B" has promised to do more to help and done plenty of "wai-ing" and making merit outside his burned out facility. 

 

In a related story the Labour Ministry made a big song and dance of presenting a large million baht check at a photo-op at the funeral of a brave manager who was killed helping victims in the fire. He was Thai and eligible for work related benefits.

 

Perhaps the Thai authorities might step up to help an innocent foreign national legally residing in Thailand who through no fault of her own had her life irrevocably changed after a simple night out went wrong, ASEAN NOW suggests. 

 

-- © Copyright  ASEAN NOW 2022-08-12

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

Monthly car subscription with first-class insurance, 24x7 assistance and more in one price - click here to find out more!

 

Get your business in front of millions of customers who read ASEAN NOW with an interest in Thailand every month - email [email protected] for more information

[Cake Monster]

A really sad and harrowing story of a Innocent Young Lady being badly injured in the Horrific Events of the " Mountain B ' Fire

The Owners and Operators, along with the Financiers of this Illegal Venue really need to all face the full Wrath of any, and all Laws, Thailands legal system can throw at them.

But this being Thailand, there will be little or no action taken against many of those Guilty of killing and maiming so many in pursuit of their greed.

[smedly]

tragic

 

there has been a lot of talk about building control and standards in Thailand after this negligent mess (it cannot be labelled an accident) - it is pure negligence both from the owner but more so the authorities who are ulitimately responsible for letting this business operate without proper safety assessment 

 

Also in developed countries businesses like this must have insurance but of course they will not get insurance unless the building has all the safety certificates that allow it to operate, IMO the local authorities and ultimately the Thai government share most of the blame - the owners bypassed the system because they could

 

IMO all businesses like this must have liability insurance and to get that they must pass all building control requirements and safety 

 

The lady in the OP should not be paying a penny, it is the responsibilty of Government and local authorities to ensure the safety of everyone and when they fail they should pay 

[BKKTRAVELER]

55 minutes ago, webfact said:

There she had to put a 50,000 baht deposit down before they would accept her friend for treatment. 

Beautifully done by Bangkok hospital... A really humane way to deal with this tragedy. I find this absolutely disgusting. Because of the nature of the incident and how it has affected the country, any hospital should have rushed to offer free/reduced treatments for the victims. Would have costed a bit but that would bring them much better returns in the long term in term of reputation and image.

 

And only 10k so far from the owner of the pub... What a joke especially since his lawyer his praising him for being such an upstanding young man..

 

The whole story is sickening honestly.

 

Edit: I realize she is Vietnamese, but again that will not help with Thailand's international image at all. It shows foreigners are just second class liabilities.

Edited August 12, 2022 by BKKTRAVELER

[petermik]

32 minutes ago, BKKTRAVELER said:

 

 

Edit: I realize she is Vietnamese, but again that will not help with Thailand's international image at all. It shows foreigners are just second class liabilities.

It has always been this way...they take our money but care little after that.

[jacko45k]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

There she had to put a 50,000 baht deposit down before they would accept her friend for treatment. 

And there in a nutshell, another issue! What a sad tale of horror.

[madmitch]

11 minutes ago, harrycallahan said:

So she was irresponsible for not having travel insurance huh? Like all the others. 

She'd been living in Thailand for four years. Not sure if travel insurance would have been available to her.

 

As was mentioned previously, liability insurance should be compulsory but the limits on Thai policies are generally quite low. In the UK £1m is the absolute minimum you'd purchase and it is really quite cheap to buy.

 

Sadly, in Thailand, a court is likely to award a higher payout for defamation than for death or injury. There appears to be blatant negligence here but without insurance the victims will get minimal compensation from the owner.

[lowbo]

This is how Thailand works... they want it ALL, and they want you to be grateful... as for Bangkok Hospital, I recently (two months ago) had a heart attack. I had previously paid for all the Insurance requirements one would assume I needed. BKK Hospital required a 200,000 baht deposit before they would treat me. The final bill was 225k baht. for 2-1/2 days in continued care. The Insurance DENIED the claim due to what they call pre-existing condition. THEY WANT IT ALL... and YOU TO BE GRATEFUL!

[starky]

1 hour ago, BKKTRAVELER said:

Beautifully done by Bangkok hospital... A really humane way to deal with this tragedy. I find this absolutely disgusting. Because of the nature of the incident and how it has affected the country, any hospital should have rushed to offer free/reduced treatments for the victims. Would have costed a bit but that would bring them much better returns in the long term in term of reputation and image.

 

And only 10k so far from the owner of the pub... What a joke especially since his lawyer his praising him for being such an upstanding young man..

 

The whole story is sickening honestly.

 

Edit: I realize she is Vietnamese, but again that will not help with Thailand's international image at all. It shows foreigners are just second class liabilities.

Most countries don't have free health care. And that's for their own citizens fewer still have free treatment for foreign nationals.  If she was in the US the treatment would have been the same. Show proof of insurance or pay an upfront deposit.

Edited August 12, 2022 by starky

[nobodysfriend]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

so she took her in her own car to Bangkok Hospital Pattaya.

 

There she had to put a 50,000 baht deposit down before they would accept her friend for treatment. 

You don't have the money , they let you die !

[starky]

2 hours ago, smedly said:

tragic

 

there has been a lot of talk about building control and standards in Thailand after this negligent mess (it cannot be labelled an accident) - it is pure negligence both from the owner but more so the authorities who are ulitimately responsible for letting this business operate without proper safety assessment 

 

Also in developed countries businesses like this must have insurance but of course they will not get insurance unless the building has all the safety certificates that allow it to operate, IMO the local authorities and ultimately the Thai government share most of the blame - the owners bypassed the system because they could

 

IMO all businesses like this must have liability insurance and to get that they must pass all building control requirements and safety 

 

The lady in the OP should not be paying a penny, it is the responsibilty of Government and local authorities to ensure the safety of everyone and when they fail they should pay 

No what it shows is this 27 year old karnt with his measly attempts at compensation are pathetic. 50k for a funeral is rubbish and what of those with horrific injuries left alive? 

 Even if an attempt was made to blame the govt they would have reams of plausible deniabilty. 

[Archie Baker]

8 minutes ago, starky said:

Most countries don't have free health care. And that's for their own citizens fewer still have free treatment for foreign nationals.  If she was in the US the treatment would have been the same. Show proof of insurance or pay an upfront deposit.

Rexiprocol agreements buddy.  That's what governments do you know, look after their citizens when overseas.  Any nationality in UK is given A&E free of any charges.  Thailand wants it all and more.  Bangkok hospital should be ashamed of their action.  There's making money and ripping you off. 

[Guderian]

Doesn't this all come down in the end to public liability insurance? If companies and business premises were forced to have adequate cover then this kind of sad story would be much rarer. But the very idea that a company or, Buddha forfend, a branch of the government, might actually be held responsible for tragedies that they directly or indirectly play a part in is still taboo here. I've got 1.5 million Baht of liability insurance on my house just in case someone who comes here or is doing a job here gets hurt, and it costs peanuts. Come on Thailand, you can do better than this.

[BusyB]

1 hour ago, jacko45k said:

And there in a nutshell, another issue! What a sad tale of horror.

Considering the state that poor woman must have been in that is truly disgusting. 

[BusyB]

19 minutes ago, Guderian said:

Doesn't this all come down in the end to public liability insurance? If companies and business premises were forced to have adequate cover then this kind of sad story would be much rarer. But the very idea that a company or, Buddha forfend, a branch of the government, might actually be held responsible for tragedies that they directly or indirectly play a part in is still taboo here. I've got 1.5 million Baht of liability insurance on my house just in case someone who comes here or is doing a job here gets hurt, and it costs peanuts. Come on Thailand, you can do better than this.

No insurance would accept liability for that - not one health and safety check or fire procedure in place.

 

And it's not only Thailand. In the UK there was Grenfell ... with dozens of high rises there still using the same cladding that caused that tragedy even now.

 

And in the US something similar happened in California a few years ago I think, where a warehouse or art gallery or something had been converted into a raver club - also a massive death toll.

 

Thailand has many faults but this kind of thing is not specifically Thai.

[anterian]

What this really demonstrates is that Thailand is an intrinsically unsafe environment for tourists and foreign residents who are used to strict health and safety standards. Defensive driving on the road becomes defensive living in Thailand. 

[Excel]

2 minutes ago, BusyB said:

Thailand has many faults but this kind of thing is not specifically Thai.

Agree with you to a point but what is specifically Thai, unlike those other countries your referred to,  is the lack of value given to human life and the paltry compensation given to the families of those that die.

[NemoH]

1 hour ago, lowbo said:

This is how Thailand works... they want it ALL, and they want you to be grateful... as for Bangkok Hospital, I recently (two months ago) had a heart attack. I had previously paid for all the Insurance requirements one would assume I needed. BKK Hospital required a 200,000 baht deposit before they would treat me. The final bill was 225k baht. for 2-1/2 days in continued care. The Insurance DENIED the claim due to what they call pre-existing condition. THEY WANT IT ALL... and YOU TO BE GRATEFUL!

Which is the reason why I self insure due to my pre-existing conditions 

[wombat]

Isn't this about where the owners of the place jump in and say they will cover everyone's medical bills.

They did have insurance...didn't they?

[scorecard]

42 minutes ago, starky said:

Most countries don't have free health care. And that's for their own citizens fewer still have free treatment for foreign nationals.  If she was in the US the treatment would have been the same. Show proof of insurance or pay an upfront deposit.

As we all know the local attitudes to medical cover is widely different per country.

 

In Australia most people visiting the country (most types of visas) have access/cover from the Australian social health care plan 'MEDICARE'. 

 

I was back in Australia for a couple of years. My Thai granddaughter (16, speaks very advanced English) was initially accepted to receive a 6 months scholarship to study in a normal Oz local high school and take part in their swimming coaching activity. 

 

I called MEDICARE, gave them the details and asked 'would she be covered fully under Oz  MEDICARE benefits, same as a local resident OZ citizen?

 

Quick answer 'Yes, fully covered, but make sure she is registered very quickly on arrival at a local Centrelink/Medicare office, or you can probably complete this by phone, just depends on whether they want to see her to prove her identity (prove she exists).

 

(Ultimately if was all canclled. Her Thai Matayom school wasn't happy and made noises about reducing her overall grades. Her father immediately withdrew her application for the Oz opportunity.)

[wombat]

12 minutes ago, anterian said:

 Defensive driving on the road becomes defensive living in Thailand. 

I drive to arrive alive.

[Excel]

Just now, wombat said:

Isn't this about where the owners of the place jump in and say they will cover everyone's medical bills.

They did have insurance...didn't they?

Perhaps in the real world of business legitimacy but from all accounts everything about Mountain B was less than legitimate, and possibly the real money backers will just put their financial loss down to bad luck and re-invest somewhere else where the rules will similarly be disregarded.

[BusyB]

4 minutes ago, wombat said:

Isn't this about where the owners of the place jump in and say they will cover everyone's medical bills.

They did have insurance...didn't they?

Doubtful. And any reasonable insurance company would fight tooth and claw against that claim. The building wasn't licensed for what it was being used as. Would invalidate any policy even if everything else was OK.

[0815]

2 hours ago, petermik said:

It has always been this way...they take our money but care little after that.

So in your home country people get free treatment in the hospitals. You come from the Paradise ?

[Jai Dee]

Several off-topic posts and replies have been removed.

[Excel]

5 minutes ago, BusyB said:

Around 4 million, 72 dead. GBP55k a head. At UK prices. And they are still haggling despite the executives having pocketed millions in dividends.  And dozens of buildings still sporting the self-same cladding 'cos in the end not enough care there either.

Don't get me wrong. I think both are disgraceful and I agree with Smedley - this is down to regulators not doing what they're paid for, for whatever reason.

Not 4 million, the case is still being pursued. Totals are not known as no settlement yet, but will be in the 10's of millions.  But that is irrelevant how many 10's of million it will be settled for,  this is Thailand and it will be a pittance no doubt

Edited August 12, 2022 by Excel

[CLW]

10 minutes ago, 0815 said:

So in your home country people get free treatment in the hospitals. You come from the Paradise ?

Not free but they certainly not asking for some kind of deposit or security, especially in an emergency or life threatening situation 

[BusyB]

1 minute ago, Excel said:

Not 4 million, the case is still being pursued. Totals are not known as no settlement yet, but will be in the 10's of millions.

So 100k - 200k? Don't spend it all at once guys - especially on all the costs you've had since then that you had to borrow for.

 

Let's see. But years later survivors have still not seen any worthwhile compensation whilst those at fault haggle relentlessly.

 

I maintain this is not Thai specific. It's about epic regulatory failure before and after. Happens everywhere. 

[Aforek]

Body burnt 70/80 % , it's very much ; this very pretty girl will never be the same, and she will have to spend much time in hospital and surgery ????

avoid to go to Bangkok hospital, too much expensive

[mogandave]

3 hours ago, BKKTRAVELER said:

Beautifully done by Bangkok hospital... A really humane way to deal with this tragedy. I find this absolutely disgusting. Because of the nature of the incident and how it has affected the country, any hospital should have rushed to offer free/reduced treatments for the victims. Would have costed a bit but that would bring them much better returns in the long term in term of reputation and image.

 

And only 10k so far from the owner of the pub... What a joke especially since his lawyer his praising him for being such an upstanding young man..

 

The whole story is sickening honestly.

 

Edit: I realize she is Vietnamese, but again that will not help with Thailand's international image at all. It shows foreigners are just second class liabilities.

You should buy a hospital. We need more people like you to step up and help.