How did the karaoke bar fire happen?

From a spark from welding a billboard, a fire broke out and burned down an entire row of karaoke bars, killing 13 customers and forcing dozens of people to climb down water pipes and ladders to escape.

One day after the fire at karaoke bar 68 on Tran Thai Tong street (Cau Giay, Hanoi), the area is still blocked off by barriers and guarded by security forces. Four adjacent 8-9 story buildings were burned to a crisp, covered in black soot, with the facade of the billboard frame left exposed. Police continue to investigate the scene.

Many passersby turned to look at the four burnt houses.

Passersby turned to look, many stopped their cars on the side of the road and took pictures with their phones. Employees from the surrounding restaurants, which had been affected to some extent, began cleaning up the ashes. Approaching the burnt houses, the wind smelled acrid and incense smoke. The stories of the people around them all revolved around the fire that had just occurred, killing 13 people.

Fire from welding burns down karaoke bar

Authorities said the initial cause of the fire was determined to be carelessness when welding an advertising sign on the second floor of the karaoke bar 68 Tran Thai Tong. Some witnesses near the scene said the fire started as a small spark at the edge of the advertising sign on the second floor and then spread. The bar staff used fire extinguishers to control it but were unsuccessful. The dry weather and wind caused the fire to quickly rise and spread to the upper floors and three neighboring houses. The bar staff hurriedly ran outside. Some passersby joined in to help control the fire and rescue people, but only a few people on the lower floors escaped safely.

The manager of a karaoke bar two houses away said: "The fire broke out quite quickly, within just a few minutes the smoke and fire had engulfed the entire billboard outside the karaoke bar and spread to the rooms inside."

According to him, some employees on the lower floors of the 68 restaurant managed to escape. More than 10 employees on floors 6 to 8 climbed the stairs at the back of the building and then went to the attic, escaping to neighboring houses. The victims on the middle floors were trapped because the fire was too big.

Police examine the scene of the fire.

Mr. Pham Duc Nhan (26 years old, from Nghe An), one of the first witnesses at the scene, said that the time of the fire was very chaotic. Some employees screamed and shouted for help, some used mini fire extinguishers to control the fire spreading to the 2nd and 3rd floors of the restaurant but failed. According to this witness, when he ran in with some people to rescue the victims, he saw a man running down to ask for help, saying that there were still many customers on the 5th and 6th floors.

"However, I and some others climbed to the third floor but were blocked by black smoke and fire. From here, everyone shouted and ran outside to ensure their lives," said Mr. Nhan.

Luckily escaped, Mr. Do Toan Quoc (Co Nhue) cried and said, the group of 6 people had just entered the room, had not sung a song yet when they saw the thick smoke. The brothers shouted to each other to rush from the 6th floor to the 5th floor and then crawled out the fire escape at the back of the building because they had difficulty breathing. In that group, Mr. Tran Quoc Khanh (23 years old) went to the toilet and could not escape in time.

Fire escape behind houses 66 and 68 in the row of houses on fire.

Swinging on water pipes and climbing fire escape ladders to escape

Security guards and employees of surrounding shops said that when the fire was raging from the front with thick black smoke, many people climbed down water pipes and escaped by fire escapes behind the buildings.

Security guard Nguyen Van Suc, who worked nearby, said that at that time, the surrounding shops were on "alert": moving their belongings and being ready to put out the fire in case it spread to their houses. At around 2 p.m., the fire started to spread quickly, Mr. Suc ran to the back and saw a group of nearly 20 men and women climbing the fire escape ladder from karaoke bar 68 down below.

"They were mainly service staff because they had worked there for a long time and knew the entrances and exits. When they were almost at the ground, someone came to their aid and put a ladder down," he said, adding that he had seen many karaoke bar fires on the news but had never seen a fire that spread so quickly. He ran from the front to the back and saw flames billowing up and thick, black smoke.

"There was a group that climbed onto the roof of karaoke bar 68 and then climbed to the house next door to get down from the fire escape. In such a hurry, someone on the lower floor used a water pipe to escape," said a male employee who was cleaning up next to the burnt-out house. According to him, of the four burnt houses, only houses 66 and 68 had fire escapes from the back. His shop is located next to the house that was more than half damaged, and it is estimated that it will take about a month for normal business to return.

Witnesses said that when the fire spread from karaoke bar 68 to the restaurant next door, the rolling door system collapsed, causing some people to almost suffocate. The male employees had to use crowbars to pry open the door so the whole group could escape.

Workers clean up after the fire.

12 victims studied in the same class

The fire killed 13 people. Of these, 12 were in the same class at the National Academy of Politics - a class for department heads and deputy heads. The group had just finished their exams, and only one person managed to escape. The victims have been identified and brought home for burial, including a Hanoi official.

On the afternoon of November 2, the funeral of victim Tran Quoc Khanh (23 years old) took place at the funeral home of Hospital E (Nam Tu Liem, Hanoi), buried at Van Dien cemetery. Khanh used to join the neighborhood protection team and was working as an environmental worker. Before the sudden shock, his mother could not walk, there was always someone by her side. Many friends and relatives could not hold back their tears when they saw the portrait of the young man.

Authorities informed that karaoke bar 68 did not have the required operating license as required by law. The owner of the facility is Ms. Nguyen Dieu Linh (30 years old, residing in Van Quan, Ha Dong district). One day after the fire, the leaders of Cau Giay district decided to temporarily suspend the operation of all karaoke bars in the area to inspect fire prevention and fighting work. Any bar that does not meet the requirements will not be allowed to open, if it still operates, the ward chairman will be responsible.

Hanoi police initiated a case to investigate the cause and clarify the responsibilities of those involved...

According to VNE