{"id":933816,"date":"2026-07-14T07:43:27","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T07:43:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/933816\/"},"modified":"2026-07-14T07:43:27","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T07:43:27","slug":"bangkok-fire-victims-were-found-trapped-in-windowless-bathrooms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/933816\/","title":{"rendered":"Bangkok fire victims were found trapped in windowless bathrooms"},"content":{"rendered":"

BANGKOK (AP) \u2014 Most of the people who were killed in a huge fire in a Bangkok<\/a> music bar were found trapped in windowless bathrooms where they may have sought to escape the flames that claimed at least 27 lives<\/a>, authorities said Monday as investigations began.<\/p>\n

The blaze at the Rong Beer Na Ladprao bar was the city\u2019s deadliest in 17 years. It broke out late Sunday in a northern part of the Thai capital, and firefighters needed half an hour to bring it under control. The fire left 25 people hospitalized in critical condition, city officials said.<\/p>\n

Bangkok Gov. Chadchart Sittipunt<\/a> said most of the deaths were caused by smoke inhalation.<\/p>\n

By daybreak Monday, the site had been cordoned off as dozens of forensic officers sought clues about what caused the fire. The bar\u2019s street-facing windows were blown out, and debris littered the sidewalk, including charred television sets, speakers and an electric guitar. Associated Press journalists looking through the shattered windows could see empty beer bottles still sitting atop burned tables.<\/p>\n

The bar, which in Thai calls itself a brewery or beer hall, claimed to accommodate as many as 600 customers. It was not clear how many were present Sunday night.<\/p>\n

According to Bangkok\u2019s Erawan emergency services center, 73 people were hurt. The Bangkok city government said there were 28 dead, one more than Erawan\u2019s tally.<\/p>\n

The dead were trapped in bathrooms<\/p>\n

National Police Chief Kittharath Punpetch said most of the dead were found trapped in windowless bathrooms near one of the rear exits, where they may have sought shelter from the flames.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"In<\/p>\n

In this handout photo released by Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, the interior of a beer bar is seen after a fire in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, July 13, 2026. (Bangkok Metropolitan Administration via AP)<\/p>\n

In this handout photo released by Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, the interior of a beer bar is seen after a fire in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, July 13, 2026. (Bangkok Metropolitan Administration via AP)<\/p>\n

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He said the exit was not used, and people may have been blocked from reaching it by a table set up in a hall to sell candy, or because it was too dark to find the way out.<\/p>\n

Access to another exit near the kitchen might also have been narrowed by shelving units and lockers, said Kittharath, who visited the scene Monday. There were signs that at least some of the exit doors might have been locked, he added.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n AP AUDIO: People killed in Bangkok music bar fire were found trapped in windowless bathrooms\n <\/p>\n

AP correspondent Karen Chammas reports on a fire at a bar in Bangkok that has killed dozens of people.<\/p>\n

Investigators focused on the ceiling above a performance stage, where they found materials that may have been used as decorative elements, he said. Police will examine whether flammable materials were used in the interior and how electrical wiring was installed across the ceiling.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul<\/a> told reporters that a musician who was performing at the bar told him he saw smoke coming out of a circuit breaker near the stage before the power went out. Then an explosion was heard, and thick smoke quickly filled the place.<\/p>\n

Video posted on social media showed people fleeing as flames shot out of the single-story building and black smoke billowed into the sky.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"In<\/p>\n

In this image made from video provided by Instagram handle @jackfanchan, people move around a fire at a bar in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, July 13, 2026. (@jackfanchan via AP)<\/p>\n

In this image made from video provided by Instagram handle @jackfanchan, people move around a fire at a bar in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, July 13, 2026. (@jackfanchan via AP)<\/p>\n

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Buddhist monks prayed for the dead<\/p>\n

Several Buddhist monks visited the site Monday to pray for the victims, while nurses handed out face masks to help protect people from lingering smoke and fumes from the building.<\/p>\n

A registration site was set up to gather information from relatives looking for loved ones.<\/p>\n

Singer Sukanya Wongwongwai said she was performing nearby when she heard about the fire and rushed to the scene because several of her bandmates were performing at the bar. She said one of them died, three were hospitalized and one had not been located. Her band later announced on Facebook that the missing member was also found hospitalized.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom what I heard from people who were inside when the fire started, everything went dark. The power was out, and there was smoke everywhere, so they couldn\u2019t locate other people,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

In a statement posted on Facebook, the bar offered apologies and condolences and said it was cooperating with investigators. It said the bar\u2019s owner suffered serious injuries and was in an intensive care unit.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"In<\/p>\n

In this handout photo released by Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, forensic police officers inspect the site of a fire in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, July 13, 2026. (Bangkok Metropolitan Administration via AP)<\/p>\n

In this handout photo released by Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, forensic police officers inspect the site of a fire in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, July 13, 2026. (Bangkok Metropolitan Administration via AP)<\/p>\n

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Mourning family members identify the dead at a morgue<\/p>\n

Family members gathered at Bangkok\u2019s Institute of Forensic Medicine to identify the dead.<\/p>\n

Keo Oudone Poungpany, 24, was at the institute to identify his younger brother\u2019s body. Both of the brothers, migrant workers from neighboring Laos, were working as bar employees when the fire broke out.<\/p>\n

Poungpany said he was using a restroom outside the bar when the fire began.<\/p>\n

He described walking back toward the bar and encountering dozens of people running away from the flames and hearing loud noises.<\/p>\n

From the outside the bar, he began shouting for his brother. \u201cThe heat was unbearable, I couldn\u2019t get back in,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor now, I want to bring my younger brother\u2019s body back home,\u201d Poungpany said. \u201cI want to bring him home to my parents. My parents are waiting for their kids to come back together, but now one is gone.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2022, 14 people were killed by a fire<\/a> at a music bar in the eastern part of the country. And more than a decade before that, 67 people were killed and more than 200 injured in a fire during a Jan. 1, 2009<\/a>, New Year\u2019s Eve celebration at the Santika nightclub in Thailand\u2019s capital. That blaze was apparently sparked by an indoor fireworks display.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

This report corrects the total number of dead from the 2009 fire at Bangkok\u2019s Santika nightclub to 67. The number 66 in previous versions was based on an earlier story that had not been updated.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Sahatthaya Kraikhunthot contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BANGKOK (AP) \u2014 Most of the people who were killed in a huge fire in a Bangkok music…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":933817,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5],"tags":[13214,25404,4216,57,50,103,107],"class_list":["post-933816","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world","tag-asia-pacific","tag-bangkok","tag-fires","tag-general-news","tag-news","tag-world","tag-world-news"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116917215696580694","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933816","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=933816"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933816\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/933817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=933816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=933816"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=933816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}