Sad news, fire is a big killer, keep safe and prepare if you can. (seems as news say , it was a dilapidated building so I guess hard to fix/live there)
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Why is this not a separate topic? It’s a major fire, not just your neighbourhood fireworks.
Anyway I read it on the news that this is a notorious building in the area. Horrifying.
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Very sad. I’ve always wondered about abandoned looking buildings when I drive by them. They look decrepit and abandoned, except sometimes you do see signs of life. I wonder how many squatters exist in these unsafe structures, or people renting from slumlords.
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True.
Another article, updated casualty numbers.
“The fire department urged the public to not allow too much rubbish to accumulate in and around their residences and to keep stairwells unobstructed.”
What a load of bullshit.
How about they inspect the buildings and stop taking red envelopes to turn a blind eye to egregious offences against public bylaws.
Expect the usual suspects to offer their resignation.
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46 dead now. I think this is the final number. Or at least close to final.
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That’s terrible . Fire department and govt officials need to be fired.
These semi abandoned buildings are death traps. Another case recently in a quarantine hotel.
Mainly older people living there cos it was cheap I guess.
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Not only the govt, but owner or management of that place. I hope out of this sad news they do something with old (or just places not kept up) buildings and the owners. Many people just hold property and wait for values to go up, meanwhile let the building fall apart. This is not right and needs to change,
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You can also find people who are locked in because the prices are so high. They can afford to move, but know their own property isn’t worth any further investment. People who own the property but are just surviving on low wages or government support.
Not really. This building was cheap.
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Just so people know, we’re editing the thread title as more deaths are confirmed.
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from the report a majority of the victims seam to be elderly.
Taiwan has to take fire safety for buildings more seriously.
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Well cheap compared to Taipei but in this city, that area is not cheap compared to non central areas or Pingtung City. The “Building” is cheap since it was broken (banjaxed) but the land has value and gone up quite a bit recently. My point is land holders need spend some money to maintain the place. Not only safety , but helps with the standard of living. Old things break, you need fix and maintain them. Just very sad, heartbreaking and preventable event.
Updated news
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Not in Taiwan. Old things break, when broken, replace.
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Also everyone reading this, renting or home owners, check your fire alarms and your escape routes. There was a case not so long ago of an expat who lost his wife and one of his kids in a house fire.
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These old apartment buildings can be creepy places to visit. I looked at an apartment for sale in one once - was cheap like well under 1 million NT. But it had such a strange vibe, elevators long ago ceased working, random junk and recycling around.
As years go by apartment Body Corp fees mount and the property value declines so people just stop paying and the maintenance ceases.
Really? Which case?
Yet death rate from fire isn’t particularly high.
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