Fire injures 16 at Bangkok hotel
BANGKOK: -- Sixteen people, including 14 foreigners, were injured in the fire at Mandarin Hotel on busy Rama IV Road between Hualumpong Railway Station and Sam Yan intersection on Tuesday night.
According to the Narenthorn Centre, the emergency EMS centre of the Ministry of Public Health, 16 persons were injured in the incident. Eight persons, all foreigners, remain in hospital and eight others, including six foreign tourists, were discharged after treatment.
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has declared the area as a danger area and outsiders may not enter without official permission.
Tuesday night's fire broke out in the hotel's second-floor kitchen, which is under renovation. The facility has 14 storeys.
Fire fighters worked about three hours to put out the flame.
Bangkok Deputy Governor Wallop Suwandee said the cost of damage is estimated at more than Bt100 million.
Officials from the Department of Public Works and Town & Country Planning have inspected cracks and damage to the structure to determine if it needs to be closed and torn down, or if it can be renovated.
--TNA 2007-09-05
