Three Lankans among nine killed in S Korea fire
Nine people were killed, including three migrant workers from Sri
Lanka, and 25 others injured when a fire raged through a karaoke
facility in Busan, South Korea, the Police said yesterday.
The blaze broke out in one of the 28 rooms at the karaoke lounge on
the third floor of a six-storey building in the southeastern port city
around 8.55pm on Saturday, causing smoke to spread quickly through the
facility and customers to panic, witnesses said.
All nine victims - seven men and two women - died from inhaling toxic
gases, the Police said. The dead include three Sri Lankans who were
holding a company party with three other Korean colleagues.
One of the injuries was serious, but the others were non-life
threatening, police said.
Police said smoke apparently made customers unable to find exits and
led to the large toll.
About 20 fire trucks and 100 firefighters battled the fire and
extinguished it around 10 pm.
Police said they are investigating what caused the fire based on
witness accounts that a torrent of flames started with a bang sound.
Courtesy: Yonhap. |
