Fire at hotel casino on Cambodia border kills at least 10

By Sopheng Cheang, The Associated Press on December 28, 2022.

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) – A fire burning through a Cambodian hotel casino has killed at least 10 people and injured 30 others, police said Thursday, and neighboring Thailand sent firetrucks to help fight the blaze in a bustling border region.

Videos posted on social media showed people apparently jumping from windows after they were trapped by the fire at the Grand Diamond City Casino and Hotel in the border town of Poipet. Thailand’s public broadcaster reported dozens of Thais were trapped inside.

The blaze that started around midnight Wednesday was still burning Thursday morning.

At least 10 people had been killed and another 30 injured, some critically, said Maj. Gen. Sithi Loh, police chief in Banteay Meanchey province.

He said 360 emergency personnel and 11 firetrucks were sent to the scene and rescue teams were looking for victims.

Sithi Loh said the cause of the blaze was not yet known. The casino employed about 400 workers.

Thai PBS reported that 50 Thais, both staff and customers, were trapped inside the casino complex. It reported that Cambodian authorities requested help to deal with the fire from Thailand, which sent five firetrucks and 10 rescue vans.

Poipet in western Cambodia is opposite the more affluent Thai city of Aranyaprathet, and there is busy cross-border trade and tourism.

Thai PBS cited reports that the Aranyaprathet Hospital’s emergency ward was full and other victims had to be sent to other hospitals.