The majority of people killed in the devastating fire at a Bangkok bar died from smoke inhalation, forensic police told AFP on Friday after completing autopsies on the 33 victims.
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The disaster quickly ravaged a popular bar-restaurant in the north of the Thai capital, Rong Beer Na Lat Phrao, on Sunday evening, where a concert was taking place.
Autopsies revealed that 27 victims died of carbon monoxide and hydrocyanic acid poisoning after inhaling the smoke, said Wiroon Supasingsiripreecha, head of the forensic medicine institute at Bangkok Police Hospital.
“When inhaled, these gases prevent oxygen from reaching the blood,” he explained. “Inhaled in large quantities, they can cause death within four minutes. »
The other six victims later died in hospital from severe burns, Wiroon added. More than 70 people were injured in total.
A senior Thai police official, Siam Boonsom, said Thursday that the establishment was using high-voltage electricity without permission, which could be one of the causes of the fire.
Authorities have announced that around 1,000 establishments in Bangkok will be inspected over the coming weeks. They have already ordered the temporary closure of three bars that do not comply with safety standards.
These are often applied laxly in nightlife establishments in Thailand, where a fire in a Bangkok nightclub had already left 67 dead and more than 200 injured in 2009.
A building security expert told AFP earlier this week that Rong Beer Na Lat Phrao appeared to lack the necessary arrangements to accommodate concerts and a large audience.
