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Bangkok sifts through fire site

A child searches yesterday through charred rubble after a slum fire in Bangkok. The fire, which sent a pall of thick, black smoke into the sky, broke out in a densely populated area packed with wooden homes on Friday. PHOTO: REUTERS

Thai police and residents began sifting through the charred remains of a downtown Bangkok slum yesterday, a day after a massive fire razed, leaving thousands homeless.

Police launched an investigation into the cause of the Thai capital's largest blaze in years, while the city governor surveyed the devastation as city emergency services kicked into gear to help the victims cope with the crisis.

No casualties had been officially reported from the fire, which, despite the efforts of hundreds of firefighters, destroyed virtually all 700 wooden houses in the Tungmahamek slum area and part of a police barracks in Bangkok's Suan Phlu area near several Western embassies and luxury hotels.

Police on Friday said up to 4,000 people were left homeless, but authorities yesterday were more cautious, saying families and residents of the area needed to register with officials before an accurate account of those left homeless and a damage estimate could be made.

"Forensic officials started their inspection of the scene today, and it will take a few days" before police can piece together what happened, an officer said.

"Police have questioned the owner of the house where the fire started, and forensic and local policemen are working at the scene," national police spokesman Pongsapat Pongchareon said.

"It will take some time before we can conclude what caused the fire," Pongchareon said.

The block where the slum had stood was a scene of thorough devastation, with nothing but charred and smoldering debris left where hundreds of two-story shanty-style wooden shacks and houses once stood.

Television footage showed city Governor Samak Sundaravej stepping through the burned-out area, while police combed the remains for clues.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration set up makeshift registration centers in the area, and several organizations including the Thai Red Cross and other charities provided food, clothing, drinking water, bedding and medical assistance to fire victims.

Several hundred people queued at the registration and charity tents, and people were seen camping overnight in nearby yards, a driving range and two colleges.

Ampai Intana said her family spent the night in a classroom after the fire left their home in ruins.

"We are lucky that no one in our family was injured or lost, otherwise it would be even more tragic," a tearful Ampai said on television.

"We are safe, but I can not bear the loss of our house and property," she said.

The fire was within 1km of the Australian, German and Danish embassies, as well as a US military office and Thailand's Immigration Department, where hundreds of detainees were evacuated Friday as a precaution.
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