Fire believed to have started in restaurant early Saturday morning

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/03/14
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Five people died and one was listed in critical condition after a fire raged through a restaurant and an old apartment building in Taipei City’s Wanhua District, reports said Saturday (March 14).

According to the fire department, the blaze started around 6 a.m. in a building located inside an alley off Huaxi Street, a tourist destination in an older part of town. When firefighters arrived, the first and second floors were alight, but within an hour the blaze was put out.

However, when the firefighters entered the building, they found nine people inside, including three who were only slightly injured, CNA reported. A restaurant occupied the first and second floor, where the fire is believed to have started, while the third and fourth floors were subdivided into between 16 and 20 apartments.

Initially, six people did not show any signs of life. At the hospital, four were declared dead while attempts to revive two others continued. However, later in the afternoon, one person was also confirmed as having passed away, reports said, leaving one in critical condition.
[FULL  STORY]