officials Cambodia The death toll rose to 19 in the fire that devastated a casino in the early hours of Thursday morning. It is located in the Cambodia town of Poipet, 200 meters from the Thai border.
Banteay Meanchey state information chief Sek Sokhom told VOD this Thursday that emergency teams had recovered 19 bodies from inside the Grand Diamond City casino. There may be more dead in rooms that haven’t been entered yet.
The dead are believed to be Cambodians, Thais, Malaysians and Vietnamese.
Authorities are speaking dozens of injuredMany were transferred to neighboring Thailand, the Thai Enquirer reported.
In a message posted on social networks, the Thai Ministry of Health urged health centers in Sa Kaeo province, adjacent to Poipet, to be prepared for possible injuries.
Rescuers searched for victims in the building’s debris, but The poor condition of the building made rescue missions difficult.
According to Cambodian officials, the fire started at the Grand Diamond City complex around 11:30 PM (15:30 GMT) on Wednesday and needed over nine hours to completely contain the flames.
The reason for the exit is being investigated. The fire started in the casino section and quickly engulfed the building until it crossed the hotel wing with a pedestrian crossing.
The violence that the flames spread made evacuation and destruction missions difficultattended by emergency teams and firefighters from neighboring Thailand.
Kun Kim, Deputy Chairman of the National Disaster Management Committee of Cambodia, told the AJ Cambodia portal that there was a fire there at the time of the fire. 300 to 400 people stranded He said he was inside the building and many had been evacuated, but refrained from giving figures.
Videos posted by eyewitnesses on social networks show a group of people trapped on the roof of the building. He decides to jump into the void to avoid the flames.
Others affected tried to climb down emergency stairs and tied sheets hanging from windows, according to the footage.
rescue team they had to use helicopters to evacuate dozens of people who climbed onto the roof.
An important city on the road connecting Cambodia’s tourist city of Siem Reap with Thailand’s capital city, Poipet is famous for a dozen casinos near the Thai border. the game is illegal.