The fire that broke out in an apartment building in Hanoi, Vietnam, claimed the lives of 56 people, according to the announcement made by the police.
Nation's Deadliest Fire
According to The Guardian, the fire started at 11:00 PM local time on Tuesday, September 12, when most of the building's 150 residents were either sleeping or getting ready for bed. Video from the incident shows ferocious flames shooting through windows on every story until the fire was put out by firefighters an hour later. The source of the blaze is yet unknown.
At least 70 people needed to be rescued from the burning building, and others were hurt as they tried to escape by jumping onto nearby rooftops. According to officials, around 40 individuals were hurt.
Pictures of the blaze's aftermath, as published by Vietnamese online newspaper VnExpress, show dozens of burned motorcycles and bicycles on the ground level and completely destroyed apartment interiors. Despite the smoke from the fire, residents could also be seen in other photos peering out through security bars.
As hospitals and government authorities continue to tally dead bodies, a public security leader named Le Van Tuyen said that the fire had caused very heavy damage and that a very large number of people had been killed or wounded.
Pham Minh Chinh, the prime minister, went to see the burned building and the neighboring hospitals where people were being treated for injuries sustained in the blaze.
He said, "Such a high-rise building, up to 10 floors, which looks like a mini apartment block, has no escape route. It is unacceptable when [the apartment block which houses] 45 households has no exit."
Chinh added that all treatment expenses will be paid for by the government.
Concerns About Fire Prevention
In the densely populated cities of Vietnam, fire prevention is a constant source of worry. With an estimated 22,000 residents per square kilometer, Hanoi is said to be highly populated.
In most cases, houses and smaller apartment complexes are constructed close to one another in a long, thin "tube" layout. The result is that many structures only have front and rear windows, and they are usually barred for safety reasons.
In addition, many establishments utilize rolling garage doors as their primary point of entry. These doors will not function if the building's power is shut off due to a fire.
The older areas of Hanoi, like the one where the fire occurred, are characterized by mazes of small roadways that prevent fire trucks from reaching the majority of the city's residents.
Since a karaoke bar fire in a region near Ho Chi Minh City claimed the lives of 32 people in September 2022, this occurrence has been Vietnam's worst fire. In the wake of that catastrophe, fire safety standards in karaoke venues throughout the country were tightened.
