Authorities on Monday ordered an investigation into the cause of a fire in Hsinchu City that claimed the lives of two firefighters late on Sunday, vowing to apportion responsibility as soon as possible.
The Hsinchu City Fire Bureau received a report of the fire at a 28-story apartment complex at 10:55pm on Sunday.
As of 1:10pm on Monday, all 351 people in the building had been rescued, the bureau said.
Photo: Hung Mei-hsu, Taipei Times
Nearly 50 people are being treated for injuries at nearby hospitals, it said.
As the smoke was mostly in the staircase, it suggested other residents remain inside their homes to prevent smoke inhalation.
After arriving on the scene on Sunday evening, firefighters found that cables in the pipe room were on fire and emitting thick smoke.
They managed to bring the blaze under control at about 11:35pm, although residual smoldering continued.
There was a blackout while people were trapped in the building, so firefighters Lee Yung-chen (李詠真) and Chou Li-hsin (周立鑫) went inside to try to rescue them, the bureau said.
A firefighter said that the pair were taking the stairs to the third and eighth floor, where the people were reportedly trapped, when they discovered their oxygen was insufficient.
The firefighter said they received a distress signal and dispatched more firefighters to rescue their colleagues, but after receiving another signal, no more was heard from them.
Lee and Chou were subsequently found collapsed on the third-floor staircase.
The firefighter said the thick and sticky smoke from the burning cables may have hindered the pair from escaping.
Hsinchu Mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) visited the rescued residents and family members of the deceased firefighters at the hospital early on Monday morning, offering her condolences and gratitude.
She said the city government would handle subsequent affairs for Lee's and Chou's families.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) in a statement also expressed condolences to the firefighters’ friends and families on behalf of the government, which he said is to assist the city with bereavement affairs.
Agencies have been instructed to ascertain the source of the fire and apportion responsibility as soon as possible, and to keep the families and community informed of their findings, he said.
National Fire Agency Director-General Hsiao Huan-chang (蕭煥章) told reporters that investigators have already been sent to the scene, and vowed to share information when available.
Additional reporting by Chung Li-hua
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