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MALAYSIA-FIRE-ACCIDENT
Six dead in Malaysia karaoke fire
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 20, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Six people, including three
foreigners, were killed when a fire broke out Wednesday in a Malaysian
karaoke centre, with rescuers describing scenes of chaos as the blaze
engulfed the building.
The fire erupted before dawn on the fourth floor of an eight-storey
building in the city of Ipoh, northern Perak state.
Firefighters rushed to the scene and found the bodies of six people who
had died of smoke inhalation, Perak fire department acting director Sayani
Saidon told AFP.
“We came across two locals, two Vietnamese women and a Bangladeshi man. We
are still determining the identity of the sixth person,” she said.
Firefighters rescued eight people alive, including two in critical
condition, she added.
People inside were unable to find the way out after the fire erupted as
exit lights did not come on, she said. Those that survived had run to an
upper level to escape the flames.
“When the fire happened, all the electricity went out, and it was dark, so
the exit signs weren’t clear,” she said.
The building was originally an office block, and had 30 karaoke rooms on
the fourth and fifth floors.
BSS/AFP/MSY/1523 hrs