A fire broke out at the Kaofeng Hotel in the Alishan National Forest Recreation Area at about 11pm yesterday, prompting more than 180 guests and staff to evacuate it and a neighboring hotel.
Firefighters extinguished the flames after about three hours and no injuries were reported.
The blaze reportedly started on the third floor of the hotel and spread quickly, with thick smoke affecting the adjacent Wunsun Hotel.
Photo courtesy of a reader
The Chiayi County Fire Bureau is investigating to determine the cause of the fire and whether it was sparked by faulty electrical wiring.
The bureau said it received word of the fire at about 11pm yesterday and dispatched personnel and vehicles from 10 squads.
Firefighters found the four-story concrete building engulfed in flames and thick smoke and extinguished the fire at 2:33am this morning, it said.
The fire began in a storage room on the third floor used for hotel supplies, Kaofeng Hotel manager Chen Kun-mao (陳昆茂) said.
About 80 guests and staff were evacuated from Kaofeng Hotel and no one was injured, but rooms were damaged by smoke and the total property losses would be difficult to estimate, Chen said.
Among those affected were at least 11 foreign nationals, including five guests from Malaysia, three from Poland and three from Thailand, separate reports said.
A nearby convenience store provided bottled water, instant noodles and heat packs to those affected, while a local restaurant offered shelter from the cold.
Although the neighboring Wunsun Hotel did not catch fire, its interior was damaged by high temperatures and smoke, and it would require renovations, Wunsun Hotel manager Liao Ching-tai (廖景泰) said.
The 105 people staying at the hotel last night were evacuated and sent to other hotels, Liao said, adding that no injuries were reported.
Police said that officers assisted with the evacuation of the two hotels, relocating many people to the Gau Shan Ching Hotel and Alishan Gou Hotel, as well as police and Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency guesthouses, police said.
Surveillance footage has been accessed to clarify the cause of the fire, police added.
Additional reporting by CNA
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