Eighteen Homes Destroyed in Blaze: 1 Dead

Eighteen homes were razed to the ground, November 21, in Taichung County’s Tanzi District, after a fire broke out on the second floor of one of the residences.

Firefighters received a call at 5:52pm after black smoke was seen billowing out one of the dwellings on the residential block. Sixty-seven firefighters and 23 firetrucks were dispatched to the scene. Due to the intensity of the blaze, the fire quickly spread to neighboring houses, and firefighters were unable to contain the blaze.

At around 8:00pm, firefighters were extinguishing residual fires, and had found the charred remains of one person. He was later identified as a 68 year-old taxi driver surnamed Wu. Mr Wu was found on his back balcony.

According to Liberty Times, Fire Department Chief Xiao Huan-zhang (蕭煥章) said that the more than 40 year-old brick buildings had all been joined together at roof level. Even fire-protection lanes had been roofed-over by residents, causing all buildings on the block to be joined together.

Townhouses ablaze in Taichung County Tanzi District November 21, 2016
Homes on fire in Taichung County, Tanzi District, November 21, 2016. Within 2 hours, the whole block was destroyed. Photo: Liberty Times Network.
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