Firemen responding to the alarm were delayed in breaking in while they conducted tests to try to find out if there was a fire but they detected no heat.
Reports said there was smoke coming from the basement of the low-rise building at around 9.30pm yesterday. A bank statement stated there was no fire or explosion.
Initial reports said eight people died at the scene and seven were taken to hospitals.
Firemen said when they finally began breaking into the bank building, they found that doors had been tightly locked by bank-grade security. They managed to rescue three people on the ground floor but could not access either the basement or first floor.
Within 20 minutes, firemen had pulled out three unconscious victims of the fire retardant, as well as the bodies of a woman and two men already overcome. Other bodies were found in the next 20 minutes. According to an official statement by SCB, this was “an accident caused by the negligence of the contractor hired to improve fire protection of the building”. It gave no further details.
The statement said “gas pyrogens opened” and released the fire retardant. “This caused injuries and deaths”, the statement said.
The bank issued a press release late Sunday night, saying there was no fire or explosion, so all banking offices would be open today (Mar 14) as usual. The statement added condolences for the victims. The bank’s chief executive will hold a press conference on the incident this morning.
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