The fire, the causes of which are being investigated, took place in a thirteen-story building in the city of Kaohsiung and injured 50 residents.
A fire in a 13-story residential and commercial building killed at least 46 people on Thursday and injured another 50 in the southern Taiwan town of Kaohsiung. The fire originated from causes that are being investigated during the early morning hours and destroyed several floors of the building, until the firefighters were able to extinguish it first thing in the morning after several hours of intense work, which required the deployment of 377 rescue workers and 139 trucks and ambulances.
Firefighters pointed out that most of the deaths occurred between floors seven and eleven, for residential use, and in which mainly people with few resources lived, according to a police officer who pointed out that the building was 40 years old. The first five floors, dedicated to shops, were unoccupied at the time of the incident.
Rescue teams were able to rescue at least 62 people between the ages of 8 and 83, although seven of them died shortly after from the severity of their injuries. Fire Department Chief Lee Ching Hsiu said the final death toll could rise due to fears that several residents may have been trapped in the residential area. Meanwhile, the authorities are already investigating the causes of what happened and even do not rule out that the fire could be intentional.
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