Bangkok police building razed to the ground by fierce blaze
A Bangkok police building that stored thousands of official state documents was razed to the ground by a fierce blaze in the early hours of this morning.
About 50 firefighters dashed to the Fifth Division of the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) on Sathorn Road to tackle the fire. Fortunately, there were no casualties because of the blaze.
According to reports from Bangkok Post, the fire began at around 4am and quickly spread throughout the three-floor building. The blaze was so intense that it caused loud explosions, resulting in the closure of roads within a 1-kilometre radius of the building by the police.
Firefighters battled the flames for over an hour before finally bringing the blaze under control. Although nobody was inside the building at the time of the fire, several cars parked in the vicinity were damaged.
Upon learning of the incident, Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt immediately made his way to the scene. He revealed that a police officer who was guarding the building had heard a loud sound resembling an electric short circuit emanating from the first floor of the building. Upon inspection, the officer discovered that a pile of documents had caught fire.
The 56 year old Bangkok Governor said…
“The officer alerted the firemen after failing to douse the flames with a fire extinguisher.”
Pol Lt Gen Thiti Saengsawant, the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, revealed that the fire originated on the first floor of the building and quickly spread to the second and third floors, causing significant damage to the entire structure.
The blaze was so intense that it caused the roof of the building to collapse. The Metropolitan Police Bureau commissioner confirmed that the damage sustained was extensive, with the entire building badly affected.
He said…
“The building stored official documents, and officers would check whether documents of important cases were kept there.”
The destruction of this building and the loss of important police files is a significant blow to police chiefs and politicians in Bangkok. Investigations are currently underway to determine the cause of the fire and assess the extent of the damage caused.
