Four Tourists Reportedly Killed In Phuket Discotheque Fire

[webfact]

Four reportedly killed in Phuket discotheque fire

file photo

PHUKET: -- Four tourists were believed to be killed in a massive fire broke out at the well-known Tiger Pub in Phuket's Krathu district early Friday, Thai Rath Online reported.

Thai Rath said the fire broke out at 4:40 am on the second floor of the pub, which is a discotheque. The place was still full with Thai and foreign tourists when the blaze broke out.

Thai Rath said at press time at 6 am, fire fighters were still trying to put out the blaze. It said four bodies were believed to be trapped in the fire.

-- The Nation 2012-08-17

[ratcatcher]

Don't tell us the emergency escape doors were chained and locked please!!!

[webfact]

'Four dead' in fire at Thai tourist nightclub

Bangkok, Aug 17, 2012 (AFP) - A fire broke out early Friday at a nightclub popular with foreign tourists on the Thai resort island of Phuket, leaving four people dead and about a dozen injured, officials said.

"There are four confirmed dead. We believe they are foreign tourists but it's not yet confirmed," Phuket deputy governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada told AFP by telephone.

"The fire was caused by lightning which struck a transformer and the fire spread throughout the place," he added.

The blaze broke out at the Tiger disco in the town of Patong, a magnet for foreign tourists on the southern island.

A second provincial official said 12 people were admitted to hospital with injuries.

Rescue workers had retrieved the four bodies and sent them for autopsy, he added.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2012-08-17

[webfact]

Pre-dawn fire at Tiger Pub on Phuket's Patong kills four, injures 40; electrical transformer explosion may have caused blaze /MCOT

[Moruya]

I played that venue many times.

Another sad event.

[ITMan]

Very sad news indeed, my condolences to all the families.

[cloudhopper]

Aren't those places supposed to be closed by then?

[oki]

Thai Rath said the fire broke out at 4:40 am on the second floor of the pub, which is a discotheque. The place was still full with Thai and foreign tourists when the blaze broke out.

hhhmmmm I am wondering? 04:40 AM. Phuket seems to have special operating hours. ;-O

But what ever and who who cares.

Carelessness cost other lives and the barmen has to go to jail!

[Alboy666]

It's disturbing just how quickly a fun night out can turn into a disaster. I was in Santica in Bangkok about 5 days before the horrific fire back in New Year of 2009 and it gave me a real wake up call to what a death trap some of the clubs here can be. Very sad for all the families involved

[julemanden]

Don't tell us the emergency escape doors were chained and locked please!!!

Do you think there where any ?

[happysanook]

i don't know if anyone's ever been in the new Spicy in CM, but the top floor is terrifying...there are no exits at all. only one narrow stairwell leading to the bottom floor. if a fire to blaze there, everyone would be fkd.

[mpetersen]

<snip>

Wow. I am sure there isn't an honest bar, disco or karaoke owner in Thailand. It's all a snake pit. Now, how does the owner and the local police commander explain that there were people in the place at a time that it's not supposed to be open? Perfect timing to start a crackdown on that sort of lowlife corruption.

Edited August 17, 2012 by craigt3365
removed deleted post

[frimu]

Don't tell us the emergency escape doors were chained and locked please!!!

That is the standard. You don't even have to ask.

[Katipo]

Don't tell us the emergency escape doors were chained and locked please!!!

What emergency escape doors?

[mpetersen]

i don't know if anyone's ever been in the new Spicy in CM, but the top floor is terrifying...there are no exits at all. only one narrow stairwell leading to the bottom floor. if a fire to blaze there, everyone would be fkd.

Insomnia Pattaya just locks all front gates and doors after hours and only the small back stairs are available for exit.

[virtualtraveller]

I've been into that disco since the Santika fire, and remember making a point of standing by the door, ot was only a matter of time before this happened and not a single lesson was learnt the first time, disgraceful! Phuket is running out of feet to short itself in.

[webfact]

PHUKET FIRE

Fire at Phuket discotheque killed at least four Friday

The Nation

PHUKET: -- A blaze at a popular Phuket discotheque in Patong early Friday morning reportedly killed four tourists and injured many others.

Phuket Wan online reported the fire that broke out at 3.55am, almost two hours after all bars and other venues in Patong are supposed to close, killed at least four people.

The injured people were sent to Patong Hospital for treatment.

Firefighters spent about an hour before managing to extinguish the fire at the entertainment venue which is in Katu district.

After that forensic police went in to the fire scene a short time ago, to check the cause of the blaze. It is believed the bodies are still inside, the online reported.

At Patong Hospital, authorities were unable to pinpoint precisely how many injured had been caught by the fire, but a nurse did say that one man was critically burned and in danger.

The online added Patong is currently in the middle of an election campaign for mayor.

-- The Nation 2012-08-17

[sunshine51]

Sad...Sad...Sad...state of affairs on Phuket these days that's why I moved

off the rock....place went to shit ages ago and has only gotten worse

since....not hard to believe either....from shit to worse than shit.

RIP to the victims & condolences to the families.

Edited August 17, 2012 by sunshine51

[webfact]

'Four dead' in fire at Thai tourist nightclub

by Anusak Konglang

Bangkok, Aug 17, 2012 (AFP) - A fire ripped through a nightclub popular with foreign tourists in Thailand early Friday, leaving at least four people dead and more than 20 others injured, officials said.

Hospital workers said foreigners were among the casualties in the blaze at the Tiger disco on the island of Phuket, where rescue workers pulled the charred bodies of victims out of the smoldering wreckage.

"There are four confirmed dead. We believe they are foreign tourists but it's not yet confirmed," Phuket deputy governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada told AFP by telephone.

"The fire was caused by lightning which struck a transformer and the fire spread throughout the place," he added.

Hospital workers in the seaside resort of Patong said the injured included both Thais and foreigners.

"We received more than 20 people who sustained injuries from the Tiger Pub fire. Most are suffering from suffocation," one hospital worker said.

"Two are in critical condition from severe burns. One of them is a French man who suffered burns on his torso," she added. "The four dead bodies were burnt beyond recognition. We cannot identify even their gender."

Police kept back a crowd of onlookers as ambulances arrived to collect the casualties, according to local media.

"It's totally destroyed on the second floor where the fire broke out," said a provincial official at the scene.

Concerns about fire safety at Thai nightclubs were highlighted by a massive blaze at a disco in the capital Bangkok in 2009 that left more than 60 people dead, including foreigners, as people celebrated the new year.

In that incident hundreds of party-goers were inside the Santika Club when it was set ablaze by pyrotechnics during a performance by a rock band.

Three Singaporeans, one Japanese and a Myanmar national were among the dead, while scores of foreigners including some from Australia, France and Britain were injured.

Last year the owner was convicted of gross negligence and sentenced to three years in prison.

Thailand is a tourist magnet but its image as the "Land of Smiles" has been tested in recent years by deadly political unrest, devastating floods and concerns about violent crimes against foreigners.

In June an Australian woman was stabbed to death during an attempted robbery in Phuket, while two Canadian sisters were found dead in a hotel room on nearby Phi Phi island, showing signs of an extreme toxic reaction.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2012-08-17

[misterme]

I go to Tiger Disco rarely for this reason. Most people don't notice, but when I'm in Tiger, i think about the exits and the fire exit setup is bizzare. Note: After Santika, the fire inspections were visable in Patong regularly. These inspections likely saved many lives last night!

From the main dance floor:

• To the front entrance, likely where most people would run to, narrow (2+meters) between the mezzanine stairs and bar and about 10 meters (through the front part of the disco) to the double doors, from the outdoor patio/entranceway on the 2nd floor, it is then about another 12-15 meters to the scariest spiral staircase, then 5 meters through (narrow) 1st floor Tiger Bars to Bangla Rd. Think stampede!
  

• At least 2 other fire doors on the back of the disco, maybe more. I've looked on a regular basis, and they appear to not be locked.
  

• Here's the crazy thing, there are SEVERAL more fire exits (3, if I was to guess) - up on the mezzanine level. They appear to have been installed after construction, which is good. So, you have to go up, to go down, I've gone through this mantra often, wondering if I would remember if there was a panic. BUT, I would bet that very few people (even Thais) knew of these escape routes/doors.
  

Last night I left Tai Pan about 2am, things were rockin'. I assume Tiger and Hollywood were packed. After bad press caught BKKs attention of deaths (in Hollywood disco, I think) and the assassination attempt in Phuket town early in the year they had a firm 3am closing... for quite some time, slipping to 3:30 then to appx 4:30. Less than 2 weeks age they inched back to 5am.

Edited August 17, 2012 by misterme

[chrissables]

Very sad for the Deaths and the injury's, I hope they all recover.

-------------------------------------------------------

But like they say what goes around comes around Khun Piya ...you can only cheat so many people before Karma comes knocking at your door...I hope your life is ruined or hopefully you were one of the 4

Wow. I am sure there isn't an honest bar, disco or karaoke owner in Thailand. It's all a snake pit. Now, how does the owner and the local police commander explain that there were people in the place at a time that it's not supposed to be open? Perfect timing to start a crackdown on that sort of lowlife corruption.

Is the issue that people died and how, not more important than than worrying about late opening?

[Headgame]

Why does it matter if the club was open at that hour? Lightning can strike at any time.

I've been at Tiger many times after 3 AM and know that the stairs there are treacherous just after a few drinks. Can only

imagine the chaos of a fire.

Makes me sad to see all the Phuket haters using this terrible event to get rolling again.

RIP to all who died in such a horrific way and speedy recovery to those who escaped with injuries.

[webfact]

RT @191Thailand: Crowds gather near Tiger Pub & Discotheque on Bangla Rd in Patong earlier this morning (Pic @iange) http://thai.vi/TIEmw8

[teacher17]

Wow...I have also been to this disco before...(though long time ago,) and it was stupid of me then not to think about fire exits...I went to a concert once and there were so many people and I thought, "If there is a fire or stamped, etc, there is NO way out!" Sad. It seems odd that lightning struck a transformer....it will be interesting to see if that was the actual cause of the fire....I hope those injured can recover.

[stefb1964]

Don't tell us the emergency escape doors were chained and locked please!!!

Hmmm.. as we learned from past events, it wouldn't really surprise me that your assumptions could be right. Sad though..

[webfact]

Pre-dawn fire at Tiger Pub on Phuket kills four

PHUKET, Aug 17 -- Fire raged through the "Tiger Pub and Discotheque" in Phuket's popular Patong Beach early today, killing four foreign tourists and injuring around 40 others as the two-story building was burned to the ground.

The fire started at 3.45am while the pub was crowded with partygoers. The venue is a popular entertainment destination on the resort island.

The fire was extinguished after one hour, but the premises were destroyed.

Four bodies were found at the scene, all believed to be foreigners. Some 40 others were also injured, mostly from smoke inhalation, and were sent to Patong Hospital.

According to the initial investigation, police said there was a heavy rain during the night, and that shortly before the fire, witnesses told police they saw an electrical transformer at Ratchauthit 200 Year Road explode, and that sparks had splashed onto the bar.

More investigation is needed to conclude the cause of the fire. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-08-17

[cup-O-coffee]

So, a large group of police descend upon a naughty farang because he was taking a driver's test for his farang friend. The matter is blown out of proportion and the usual photos are put in the paper with all the self-important coppers standing all around showing their superiority on crime fighting.

And then this; no mention of the owners and staff being arrested on the spot and jailed for breaking several laws which in all likelihood are the cause for these senseless deaths.

I do not know whether to laugh, cry or shit my pants.

[prakhonchai nick]

Is the issue that people died and how, not more important than than worrying about late opening?

We know how 4 people sadly died, and that is an important issue, but had the law been obeyed, the disco would not have been open at 4am, and conceivably nobody would have been in the premises and nobody would have died or been injured. Is that not important too?

[brewsterbudgen]

Why does it matter if the club was open at that hour? Lightning can strike at any time.

I've been at Tiger many times after 3 AM and know that the stairs there are treacherous just after a few drinks. Can only

imagine the chaos of a fire.

Makes me sad to see all the Phuket haters using this terrible event to get rolling again.

RIP to all who died in such a horrific way and speedy recovery to those who escaped with injuries.

I agree it's sad but unfortunately this sort of reaction and baiting is all too common these day, particularly from the anonymity of a computer.

[stefb1964]

i don't know if anyone's ever been in the new Spicy in CM, but the top floor is terrifying...there are no exits at all. only one narrow stairwell leading to the bottom floor. if a fire to blaze there, everyone would be fkd.

I haven't been there and from what you describe, it's indeed a place to avoid. In the west such locations aren't allowed to open without the approval of the fire department. I know what some of us here keep repeating;TIT.. but what about the respect for all living beings, referring to their Buddhist teachings ? Edited August 17, 2012 by stefb1964