A 72-year-old American man suffered burns after a portable cooking gas canister erupted into flames and started a fire at a condominium in central Pattaya on Sunday afternoon, 5 July 2026. The blaze caused extensive damage to a fourth-floor unit at Casa Espana Condominium in Soi Kasetsin 7, but firefighters were able to contain it to the unit and prevent it from spreading to neighbouring apartments.

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The fire broke out at approximately 4.15pm on 5 July 2026. Emergency responders from Pattaya’s disaster prevention and rescue units were sent to the scene after reports of a fire at the condominium.

When firefighters arrived, residents and tourists were evacuating the building as flames and smoke poured from the balcony of Room 36 on the fourth floor. Crews evacuated occupants and initially used an external water hose line, to tackle the fire. Breathing apparatus team then entered the unit, bringing the fire under control after 30 minutes.

The injured resident was identified as Mr Richard Rainer Suborough, the 72-year-old American owner of the apartment. He sustained burns to his back, neck and torso, received first aid at the scene from rescue workers and was taken to hospital for treatment.

Speaking from his hospital bed, Mr Suborough reported that he had smelled smoke coming from the balcony and went to investigate. He said that when he opened the door, the burning gas canister suddenly flared up violently, engulfing him in flames before he managed to escape the apartment.

“I was lucky that people quickly alerted the authorities,” he said.

Pictures courtesy of SiamChon

Police said preliminary investigations indicate the fire started from a portable gas canister used for cooking. The exact cause of incident and the rapid spread of the fire remain under investigation. Officers plan to return to the scene later on 6 July 2026, as part of their inquiry and are awaiting a full statement from Mr Suborough. Forensic experts will also assist investigators in determining the precise cause of the explosion.

Authorities have reminded residents to regularly inspect gas equipment and ensure proper ventilation when using portable cooking stoves to reduce the risk of similar fires.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now SiamChon 6 July 2026

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10 minutes ago, Georgealbert said:

Police said preliminary investigations indicate the fire started from a portable gas canister used for cooking.

Hospital bill, building damage and probably passport taken until issue is "resolved "

Gas canister isn't allowed so should be prosecuted for damage, not something you want at 72

52 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

Gas canister isn't allowed so should be prosecuted for damage, not something you want at 72

Yes I was wondering about that... completely banned I believe in condos. One gets an image of some old boy changing the cylinder with a cigarette in the mouth!

That said I had a big cylinder on my balcony in my Abu Dhabi flat many years ago!

2 hours ago, Georgealbert said:

A 72-year-old American man suffered burns after a portable cooking gas canister erupted into flames and started a fire at a condominium

Ha ha, foreigners strike again, breaking the law.

It was a nice building 😂

The gas lines on these tanks are a joke, rubber hoses have a hose clamp connecting them.

10 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

The gas lines on these tanks are a joke, rubber hoses have a hose clamp connecting them.

Yes, that's why they are not allowed in condos

1 hour ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Yes, that's why they are not allowed in condos

Typically I think the average condo unit has a microwave for cooking and nothing else that seemes ridiculous especially with cooking Thai meals. I used an electric grill and convection plate placed in the balcony.

Off topic post about Trump removed @SiSePuede419

Rule 10. You will not post troll messages. Trolling is the act of purposefully antagonizing forum members by posting controversial, inflammatory, irrelevant or off-topic messages with the primary intent of provoking other members into an emotional response or to generally disrupt normal on-topic discussion.

2 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Yes, that's why they are not allowed in condos

These are the common small butane gas canisters (the screw-on type, often sold in packs for portable stoves, camping, or tabletop burners).

6 minutes ago, Smokey and the Bandit said:

These are the common small butane gas canisters (the screw-on type, often sold in packs for portable stoves, camping, or tabletop burners).

Exactly, no problem using these in my condo, the cylinder type with attached hose are not allowed.

10 minutes ago, Smokey and the Bandit said:

These are the common small butane gas canisters (the screw-on type, often sold in packs for portable stoves, camping, or tabletop burners).

Oh thanks, my bad, I didn't read that.

A lot of speculation in the peanut gallery as usual. I just want to see if his face looks mildly burned or if the guy looks like Freddy Kruger fresh out of the furnace. He could travel around the country scaring school children like Fire Marshall Bill from 'In Living Color'.

4 hours ago, jacko45k said:

some old boy changing the cylinder with a cigarette in the mouth

You need a spark or open flame to ignite gas. We were misled as children.

These little, alarmingly cheap and tinny, portable stoves are terrifying!

I would not use one anywhere, let alone in a condo where they shouldn't be used anyway.

I cringe when I see restaurants with these things on the tables, usually hot pot places.

When Mrs P yearns her moo- katah, we go to a place with charcoal burners. If you burn yourself it's your own stupid fault, not chance of a failing cheap-arse component.

If you must have one, at least source a properly built one that meets some kind of safety standards, a la nanny-states Europe/USA.

e.g. Gas One GS-3400P camping stove.

N.B. these are intended for outside use!

22 minutes ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Oh thanks, my bad, I didn't read that.

There has been no clarification in any of the reports as to the size of the gas canister in the incident. All reports in both English and Thai have used the word canister and not cylinder.

Also normally if a large cylinder was involved, the images from the scene normally shows responders removing this to safety. This has not been shown here, but that is not proof one was not involved.

My personal guess, would be this was a small canister, that leaked and resulted in a vapour explosion. The images of the burns, not shown in OP, look like flash burns, the type caused by limited exposure to the resulting fire ball and not prolonged exposure. Again without being at the scene, this is just an opinion, but the forsensic team will have no problem reviewing and determining the cause.

9 minutes ago, Georgealbert said:

My personal guess, would be this was a small canister, that leaked and resulted in a vapour explosion.

Or perhaps he had the gas turned on for too long before igniting?

4 minutes ago, novacova said:

Or perhaps he had the gas turned on for too long before igniting?

Yes possibly but that is also what a vapour explosion is. Maybe he never mentioned it, to save his embarrassment.

A vapour explosion is a violent explosion that occurs when flammable vapours mix with air in the right proportions and are ignited by a spark, flame, or other ignition source.

7 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Gas canister isn't allowed so should be prosecuted for damage, not something you want at 72

Do you mean that they're not allowed under the Juristic rules of that particular condo? There is no statutory ban on gas stoves/canisters in condos.

Cooking with a portable gas canister, on a balcony, at the age of 72, in Thailand. Living the dream. 😂

12 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Do you mean that they're not allowed under the Juristic rules of that particular condo? There is no statutory ban on gas stoves/canisters in condos.

Usually it's in the condo house rules, check yours

8 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

Usually it's in the condo house rules, check yours

I have, they're allowed up to a certain size, the gas bottle supplier is a frequent visitor to the condo.

Is there mandatory house insurance in those (and other) condo's ?

51 minutes ago, FlorC said:

Is there mandatory house insurance in those (and other) condo's ?

The condo block will have some sort of insurance it may not cover fires like this, the American guy is responsible to pay damages to all those affected

From the look of the blast, it must have been a 10kg cylinder, like ours. Yes, of course, sometimes we leave the burner on too long before lighting it. But we certainly would never change a cylinder ourselves. We let the gas supplier do that.

8 hours ago, jacko45k said:

Yes I was wondering about that... completely banned I believe in condos

Maybe not permitted by certain condos' JP rules but they're not "completely banned" by law.

4 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

From the look of the blast, it must have been a 10kg cylinder, like ours. Yes, of course, sometimes we leave the burner on too long before lighting it. But we certainly would never change a cylinder ourselves. We let the gas supplier do that.

That was certainly not a cylinder blast. The injuries are clearly only from a vapour explosion fire, flash burns. If the victim had been next to a cylinder explosion or BLEVE, he would not be sat talking with responders.

The damage in the picture is standard fire damage. A question I would ask , would be did the external water hose line aid the fire spread, by pushing the fire into the unit.

Again without full details, it is not suitable to criticise. If first responders were told that a burning LPG cylinder was involved, then cooling would be a priority.

8 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Ha ha, foreigners strike again, breaking the law.

Which law was he breaking?

6 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

gas lines on these tanks are a joke, rubber hoses have a hose clamp connecting them.

Yes, that's why they are not allowed in condos

Yes, that's why they are not allowed in some condos. In others there is no prohibition.

2 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Yes, that's why they are not allowed in some condos. In others there is no prohibition.

G'day Louie, how are they hanging?

I saw today, a fellow member greeted you with a 'nice to meet you', in the forum today 😂

Have you recovered yet, it's normally hostile replies that you are receiving

1 hour ago, FlorC said:

Is there mandatory house insurance in those (and other) condo's ?

If that question's directed at me, no, it is not.