ISLAMABAD (GNP): The death toll from a fire at a live music pub in Bangkok has climbed to 32 after two more victims succumbed to their injuries, the Police Hospital said Wednesday, as authorities continue investigating whether negligence contributed to one of Thailand’s deadliest venue fires in recent years.
The blaze tore through the Rong Beer Na Lat Phrao pub in the city’s northern Chatuchak area close to midnight on Sunday. Witnesses described an explosion followed by a horizontal burst of fire and thick smoke that quickly engulfed the single-storey venue. A video verified by Reuters showed smoke billowing from the building before an intense plume of fire erupted from a doorway as screaming customers fled.
Bangkok’s Erawan Emergency Medical Centre said 30 people remained hospitalized as of Wednesday, with 15 in intensive care, while 44 others had been discharged. The city’s medical department had earlier reported 73 people injured, 25 of them critically, with 32 treated and released in the immediate aftermath.
Authorities believe the fire was most likely triggered by an electrical short circuit in a ceiling air conditioning unit, based on Bangkok’s disaster administration’s initial assessment. Police are separately examining whether emergency exits were obstructed or locked, and whether flammable materials used in stage decorations and soundproofing worsened the blaze. National Police chief Kittiratt Phanphet said negligence has been established as the primary theory guiding the investigation, and the pub’s owner remains hospitalized in intensive care.
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who visited the site, said most victims had fled toward the back of the building into a bathroom that had no clear fire exit. During an inspection, officials found that a former exit door had been bolted shut, reportedly because the proprietor feared customers would leave without paying their bills; the door was marked “staff only” despite opening to the outside. Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt said one of the venue’s two fire exits, located near the kitchen, had been blocked by beer crates.
Firefighter Chakrit Khongkom, among the first responders on scene, said many patrons were trapped inside and that smoke filled the venue, with most survivors choking as they attempted to escape. Rescue teams found a large number of victims near the pub’s toilets, where many had fled after the fire appeared to originate near the front stage area.
Experts say combustible decorative material used to enhance the venue’s acoustics likely ignited rapidly, generating intense heat, smoke and toxic fumes that trapped patrons inside. City authorities confirmed the pub was licensed as a restaurant and live music venue and had passed a fire safety inspection in April, when exits, emergency signage and extinguishers were reportedly in place.
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The incident adds to a troubling pattern of fire safety lapses at Thai entertainment venues. At least 13 people were killed in a nightclub fire in Chonburi in 2022, while a blaze at a packed Bangkok club during a New Year celebration in 2009 killed 65 people, with a subsequent investigation citing corruption and safety violations as contributing factors.
In response to the latest tragedy, the government has pledged to tighten regulations for entertainment venues, including random inspections to ensure fire exits remain unobstructed and that safety standards are consistently enforced.
