Bangkok bar fire: death toll reaches 30 as police investigate negligence as ‘primary theory’

Wreckage from the scene of a fire at Rong Beer Na Ladprao pub in Bangkok, Thailand, where at least 30 people died in a fire. Photograph: Teera Noisakran/JNA/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock View image in fullscreen Wreckage from the scene of a fire at Rong Beer Na Ladprao pub in Bangkok, Thailand, where at least 30 people died in a fire. Photograph: Teera Noisakran/JNA/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock Bangkok bar fire: death toll reaches 30 as police investigate negligence as ‘primary theory’ Bar owner in Thailand offers ‘deepest apologies for this tragic incident’ as police investigate whether exits were either blocked or hard to access The Bangkok pub that has become the scene of the city’s deadliest blaze in 17 years has said it will cooperate with an investigation into alleged negligence, as the death toll rose to 30. The local district office said on Tuesday that three more people died after the devastating fire that broke out in the early hours of Monday. An initial assessment by disaster officials found that an electrical short ‌circuit in an air conditioner located in the ‌ceiling caused the fire. Authorities have confirmed the identities of 27 victims, with three yet to be identified. Most are believed to be Thai nationals. Of the injured, 24 are in a critical condition, 15 have moderate injuries, and 36 sustained minor injuries and have returned home. National police chief Kittiratt Phanphet told reporters on Monday: “At this time, police have established negligence as the primary theory guiding their investigation.” At least 27 killed in fire at Bangkok pub with another 22 critically injured Read more In a statement released on Monday evening on social media, the Rong Beer Na Ladprao pub offered its “deepest apologies for this tragic incident”, and extended its condolences to the families of the deceased. The pub, located in the city’s north, also pledged its full support to the investigation and “transparent fact-finding process”, as officials have flagged inquiries into whether exits were accessible. Most of the victims were found trapped in windowless bathrooms near one of the rear exits, Kittharath said. That exit was not used, and people may have been blocked from reaching it by a table set up to sell candy, or because it was too dark to find the way out, Kittharath said. Access to another exit near the kitchen might also have been narrowed by shelving units and lockers, according to the chief who visited the scene on Monday. There were signs that at least some of the exit doors might have been locked, he added. In a video shared by prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s office during an inspection of the scene, the leader was told a door that was once an exit was bolted, with the proprietor afraid that customers would slip out without paying their bills. The door had a sign that said “staff only” and could open to the outside, but an official told Anutin customers would not have been aware. “If they had run this ⁠way, it would have been fi