Bangkok’s Governor says Chatuchak is safe and repairs underway
PHOTO: TNA MCOT
Bangkok’s governor says Chatuchak Weekend Market is safe and that there will be no damage to tourism at the Bangkok icon.
Chatuchak, aka ‘JJ Market’, has more than 15,000 stalls and 11,500 vendors, divided up into 27 sections. It is the world’s largest and most diverse weekend market, with over 200,000+ visitors every weekend.
A fire on Sunday night destroyed 100 or so shops and damaged many others. Governor Asawin Kwanmuang says that repairs are being made quickly and, in the meantime, tents for affected vendors were being erected.
The market was already closed for the night when the fire started around 9.15pm near the Gate 1 area.
The Governor told media that it was probably an electrical fault that was responsible for the blaze, fuelled by the extreme heat on the night and a strong wind. Other media reports yesterday said that witnesses had reported an exploding transformer triggering the blaze.
