50 Thais trapped in burning Cambodian casino

[reader]

From Thai PBS World

At least 50 Thai gamblers and employees of a Cambodian casino in the Poipet border town were reported to be trapped inside after the casino caught fire late Wednesday night. A number of people, mostly Thais, were injured and were taken to the Thai border town of Aranyaprathet, Sa Kaeo Province, for treatment.

It is not known whether or how many people have died in the fire, as some witnesses claim that they saw some people jumping from the 5th floor of the building, which is located at about 20 metres from the border. About 50 people were seen on the roof.

Five fire trucks and about 10 rescue vehicles and ambulances rushed to the scene to help extinguish the fire and help victims.

At about 2am this morning (Thursday), it was reported that the Aranyaprathet district hospital’s emergency ward was full of fire victims, many of them Thai women. Some of the injured were sent to the Kasemrad Aranyaprathet private hospital.

Witnesses said that they saw fire on the second and third floors of the casino and a lot of smoke billowing out of the building.

The latest reports from the scene say that the fire has intensified and has spread to nearby buildings.  More fire trucks and rescue teams from other districts of Sa Kaeo Province been sent to help control the blaze.

Poipet is a favourite destination for Thai gamblers, as gambling is illegal in Thailand and there are many casinos just over the border, some owned by Thai businessmen.

============================

From CNN

Death toll rises and dozens remain missing

Phnom Penh, Cambodia CNN  — 

The death toll has risen to at least 19 and dozens of others remain missing after a fire engulfed a casino complex in Cambodia on Wednesday, according to local authorities.

Another 70 people were injured in the blaze at the Grand Diamond City Hotel and Casino in Poipet, a city that borders Thailand, and the death toll was expected to rise as rescuers search for victims who were trapped in the building, Banteay Meanchey province spokesman Sek Sokhom told CNN.

Thai rescue workers who responded to emergency calls from Cambodian authorities said some victims had jumped to their deaths from the burning building in a frantic attempt to escape.

“Two people died immediately when they hit the ground and around four to five (others) broke their legs,” said Peerapan Srisakorn, from the Aranyaprathet Rescue Foundation.

Peerapan told CNN his team alone saw 11 bodies, including seven who had died from smoke inhalation and were found in locked hotel rooms, and said it was very difficult for rescue workers to survey the building as it was full of thick smoke.

Videos on the group’s Facebook page showed rescue workers in helmets and protective gear walking through smoke-filled corridors.

Sokhom said the hotel used an electric system for rooms and elevators, so when the fire started and the building lost electricity, many people were stuck in their rooms and could not escape.

Approximately 700 Thai citizens were rescued and sent to hospitals in Thailand, according to authorities.

Peerapan told CNN his team alone saw 11 bodies, including seven who had died from smoke inhalation and were found in locked hotel rooms, and said it was very difficult for rescue workers to survey the building as it was full of thick smoke.

Videos on the group’s Facebook page showed rescue workers in helmets and protective gear walking through smoke-filled corridors.

Sokhom said the hotel used an electric system for rooms and elevators, so when the fire started and the building lost electricity, many people were stuck in their rooms and could not escape.

Approximately 700 Thai citizens were rescued and sent to hospitals in Thailand, according to authorities.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/28/asia/cambodia-poipet-grand-diamond-casino-hotel-fire-intl-hnk/index.html

[reader]

The Bangkok Post is reporting that the casino complex is owned by a former Thai cabinet minister. Vaatanna Asavahame fled Thailand in 2008 before being convicted in connection with the Klong Wastewater Treatment scandal, one of the biggest corruption cases in the country;'s history.

[PeterRS]

6 hours ago, reader said:

The Bangkok Post is reporting that the casino complex is owned by a former Thai cabinet minister. Vaatanna Asavahame fled Thailand in 2008 before being convicted in connection with the Klong Wastewater Treatment scandal, one of the biggest corruption cases in the country;'s history.

Why am I not surprised? The photos in the OP are horrendous. They make the hotel look as though it was made of wood! Soon we will find out which fire protection corners were cut and how fire escapes were blocked, no doubt. 

[reader]

As I attempted to get updates on the fire this morning I found some of the most comprehensive coverage from the Associated Press on the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. (CBC) website.

After reading as much as I could from many different sources, and watching numerous videos, I'm inclined to believe that the factors responsible fort such rapid spread--and a still unknown number of fatalities--will be many. Although some are already talking about an electrical short as the cause, the most pertinent contributing issues will be (as PeterRS notes above) insufficient and blocked exit ways along with shoddy construction, inadequate water supply, lack of automatic fire detection and suppression systems, and delay in notification of emergency services.

If your New Year's celebrations bring you to any crowded venue, make it a point to locate alternative exits. Keep in mind that the further you go above or below street level, chances of survival get progressively lower.

From The Associated Press / CBC

A fire that lasted more than 12 hours in a hotel-casino in Cambodia killed at least 19 people and injured more than 60, officials said, while other victims were apparently not yet accounted for Thursday. 

Neighbouring Thailand sent fire trucks and emergency workers to help cope with the crisis in the bustling border town of Poipet.

Some victims were believed to still be under debris or in locked rooms that rescue teams could not immediately access, so the death toll was expected to rise, said Sek Sokhom, head of Banteay Meanchey province's information department, who also gave the injury toll.

The dead and injured people were of several nationalities, including Thai, Chinese, Malaysian, Vietnamese and Cambodian, he said. A local Buddhist temple was being used to receive bodies.

Videos posted on social media showed people falling from a roof after they were trapped by the fire at the Grand Diamond City casino and hotel in the town of Poipet. Many of the customers and staff were from Thailand.

In a video posted by Cambodia's firefighting agency, onlookers could be heard shouting pleas to rescue people trapped on the roof of the hotel complex, which is more than a dozen storeys at its highest point. The video showed at least one man falling as the flames reached the roof.

"Oh, please help rescue them. Pump water, pump water," shouted onlookers.

The Department of Fire Prevention, Extinguishing and Rescue posted that calls for help were heard from the 13th, 14th and 15th floors at 4 a.m. and hands were seen waving from windows as well as a mobile phone's flashlight signalling from inside the complex.

Thailand's public television network, Thai PBS, reported that 50 Thais, both staff and customers, had been trapped inside the casino complex. It reported that Cambodian authorities requested help to deal with the fire from Thailand, which sent five firetrucks and 10 rescue vans.

Poipet in western Cambodia is opposite the city of Aranyaprathet in more affluent Thailand, and there is busy cross-border trade and tourism.

Thai PBS cited reports that Aranyaprathet Hospital's emergency ward was full and other victims had to be sent to other hospitals.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/cambodia-hotel-fire-1.6699318

=======================

27 Thais die in casino blaze

The Bangkok Post is reporting that a  total of 27 Thais have died in the fire.

=======================

From Thai PBS World

Remains of 10 Thais who died in Cambodia’s casino fire brought home

The bodies of ten Thais who were killed in a Cambodian casino fire on Wednesday were brought back to Aranyaprathet district of Sa Kaeo Province this morning (Friday), to be claimed by their relatives.

About 20 more bodies are believed still to be trapped in the ruins of the Grand Diamond City casino, as Thai and Cambodian rescue teams await confirmation from construction inspectors that the building is safe for them to enter to search for those still unaccounted for.

One of the rescuers said that there is a danger that the building may collapse and, therefore, an assessment of its safety by the inspectors is essential.

Three of the dead, believed to be Thais, are still in Poipet township, pending identification by Thai and Cambodian forensic officials.

Thai and Cambodian rescue teams are expected to resume their search for the missing people in the ruins this afternoon,after search operations were suspended yesterday for fear that the building may collapse. It had taken fire crews seven hours to extinguish the blaze, with the support of fire trucks sent from Thailand.

 

[vinapu]

14 hours ago, reader said:

 

If your New Year's celebrations bring you to any crowded venue, make it a point to locate alternative exits..... 

 

 

...... and make sure they can open and are not blocked

[reader]

From ABC News

26 bodies found as search ends at Cambodian hotel fire site

POIPET, Cambodia -- The search for bodies in the wreckage of a burned-out casino hotel complex in western Cambodia has concluded with 26 people confirmed dead, a senior official said late Friday.

Banteay Meanchey province Governor Um Reatrey told The Associated Press by phone that after 39 hours of rescue and search operations, there were also 57 injured survivors from the Wednesday night fire at the Grand Diamond City casino and hotel in the town of Poipet.

Seventeen of the dead were from Thailand, one each from Nepal, Malaysia and China, and six bodies were yet to be identified, he said.

The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office of Thailand’s Sa Kaeo province, just across the border from Poipet, said there had been 27 deaths — 26 in Cambodia and one in a Thai hospital. It said of the 112 people injured, 27 remained in hospitals and 85 had returned to their homes.

Thailand’s Ruamkatanyu Foundation, a social welfare organization that sends volunteers to disaster scenes, said Friday the search operation in the main 17-story building of the casino complex was completed, and it was withdrawing its teams. It said its searchers could not enter the more badly damaged 6-story part of the complex because it was too unsafe.

An initial investigation found that the fire may have been caused by New Year’s holiday decorations that drew too much electricity, causing wires to overheat and burn, local authorities said.

 

[reader]

The Bangkok Post is reporting that nine Thais are unaccounted for in the aftermath of the fire. The remains of 19 other victims have been returned to their families.

This story has disappeared from the Cambodia media. I doubt an accurate number of total fatalities will be made known.

[PeterRS]

I am curious about one aspect of this ghastly event. I recall reading that the electrical system in the hotel quickly failed. As a result many were locked inside their rooms. From this it seems an obvious assumption that room doors were opened with key cards electronically. I am trying to recall if I ever stayed in any hotel when, once inside a room, it was necessary to use the key card also to exit. I always remember manual operation to open from the inside. But could a total electrical failure render this impossible? 

[floridarob]

12 minutes ago, PeterRS said:

But could a total electrical failure render this impossible? 

No, door locks work on batteries to enter, nothing to get out.