Death toll in Kaohsiung City building fire rises to 46
At the end of a 13-hour firefighting and search and rescue mission following a fire in a 13 storey building in Kaohsiung City, 46 people have been declared dead, and 41 were injured.
Kaohsiung City Fire Department said that at conclusion of the search mission at 3:30 pm, 32 bodies had been found in the Cheng-zhong-cheng (City within a City) Building in Yancheng District. Another 14 people who were rushed to hospital without vital signs, were declared dead, bringing the total fatality count to 46.
The fire department said that the main fire affected the first to sixth floors, and casualties from the seventh floor and up were mainly due to smoke inhalation.
President Tsai Ing-wen expressed her condolences to the victims of the fire, pledging the assistance of the government for the families of the victims, the injured, and those requiring emergency accommodation and help.
President Tsai said that she has also asked the relevant departments of the Executive Yuan to give the Kaohsiung City Government the greatest support, and Premier Su Tseng-chang has also gone to Kaohsiung to give condolences to the injured.
According to some reports, the catastrophe is believed to be the worst fire, in terms of casualties, in Kaohsiung City in the last 32 years.
See previous story: At least 20 dead in Kaohsiung City residential building fire
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In such cases, high casualties of this level are almost always traceable to some violation of standards and codes. The building had all occupied units in the upper floors, whilst the lower ones were supposedly “empty.” It just had the looks of a catastrophe waiting to happen. Like the Mirador and Chungking Mansions in Hong Kong. I don’t know how they’ve gone so long without a major conflagration.