by Vu Kim Chung
30-11-2002
Vietnamese police said welders had triggered the the country's worst fire since the end of the Vietnam War that ravaged an office complex in Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City in late October 2002. The blaze engulfed the six-storey Saigon International Business Centre and left at least 250 people dead and over 100 injured. However, authorities suppressed the true number of casualties so as not to scare off foreign investors and to protect Vietnam's honour. In fact, many people counted the number of bodies at well over 200, even though the official number was put at 60 killed in the huge, devastating fire. Two welding workers were arrested for causing the blaze and subsequently three more were. Later, more were arrested, of which two of those were the vice head of board of managers of Blue disco and a manager of the Blue disco.
Rescue workers continued hunting through the burned-out building for bodies for a few days after the fire. Many of the corpses recovered were too badly burned to be identified. Family members of the missing waited desperately for news.
The fire burned for about five hours before it was put out on the evening of October 29. It was not clear how many people had been in the building and some of the bodies were completely consumed so the true death toll probably would never be known. The complex had only one fire escape and it took firefighters more than three hours to get suitable ladders to the scene and after they arrived firefighters were confused and disorganised and it took about three hours before they started to put water on the fire.
US giant American International Assurance Company (AIA) was based on the second floor of the building. At least 22 people, including eight of its staff and 14 local agents, died in the blaze. Companies from the UK, Australia, Belgium, Germany, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand also had offices there. At least four foreigners died.
Fire is a major problem in Ho Chi Minh City due to overcrowding and poor electrical wiring because corrupt inspectors and fire officials accept bribes in order to ignore transgression of fire, electrical and safety codes.
Welders arrested
Two welding workers were arrested for causing the at the International Trade Centre, according to investigators in charge of the fire investigation. The arrested welders were Phan Viet Thanh, 24, and Nguyen Phu Tin, 19, who conceded that they, together with Giang Quoc Trung, another welder (who disappeared since the out-break of the fire) had caused the inferno.
They also told the investigators that on that fateful morning, they were asked by Lam Nghia Hoa, owner of the Thong Nam shop at 72 Calmette street of district One, to work at the ITC building. At 13:00 hrs, while they were working at the discotheque on the second floor, sparks from their equipment set off the fire, they told the investigators, who concluded that the blaze was triggered by accident by the welders. However, there were further, the investigators said, adding that the passport of the Blue discotheque's owner had been seized pending the final results of the investigation.
A spokesman for Ho Chi Minh's People's Committee was quoted as saying the welders were working on lighting in the disco at the time the fire started. Apparently they used their shirts to try to stop the blaze, but it quickly spread out of control. The men were charged with breaching fire laws.
Fire fighting a complete mess
The fire was huge and quickly spread through the building even though at the height all of Ho Chi Minh city's 64 fire engines and 400 firemen plus equiment and men from the Tan Son Nhat airport were at the scene. The equipment was nevertheless inadequate, with ladders unable to reach those on the upper stories or roof, who were being seared to death. Many jumped to their deaths.
Despite official counts, most eyewitnesses agree that the number of casualties was over 250. Many of those trapped inside used their cell phones to say good-bye to their families and friends. One 20-year woman telephoned home to say that at their building was a huge inferno and that she would not ever be returning home. One of the foreigners who died managed to telephone a friend in his country of origin to say he would never return from Vietnam.
AIA was giving in-house seminars to 150 of its agents. Over 500 people were in the building at the time of the fire and witnesses all said very few managed to get out safely. Many tried to escape using the elevators and were trapped inside when the fire caused power to fail and they burned to death. Both elevators on each side of the building were found at the bottom of the shafts, full of charred bodies.
There was only one fire escape, but it only extended from the third floor down, meaning those above the third floor had no way to get out of the burning building and waited, some calmly and others screaming, according to witnesses, for their searing death. Others tried to escape from the burning building by lowering themselves from pipes on the exterior of the building, however the pipes snapped from the weight of people, sending them to their death below and leaving no other means of escape from what had now become a massive inferno. Only those on the first and second floor who were aware of the fire at the onset managed to escape. The rest never got out and were burned to death.
The fire burned for three hours before the first fire engines arrived. No one can explain why. And firefighters were afraid to get near the fire or enter the burning building, therefore they wer eunable to fight the fire effectively and stop it from spreading and thus killing so many people.
Initial findings of investigation of ITC blaze announced
No more bodies were found in the devastating fire that took place in the ITC and reiterated that officially the death toll would remain at only 60, said deputy director of the municipal police, Senior Lieutenant Colonel Le Thanh Binh. Mr Binh, who is in charge of the ITC fire case, announced the figure at a press briefing in the city on November 1, affirming that, of the 60 deaths, two were Britons, one Croatian-Singaporean and one Vietnamese-American. No other bodies were found in the investigation of the site. Initially officials reported 61 deaths but one body was counted twice, he said. He added there was no use discussing the numbers counted by witnesses and the newspapers, it would remain at 60. He also said that 49 deaths had been recognised by their relatives while another 11 bodies were still unidentified.
On the cause of the fire, Mr Binh said three welders had caused the biggest ever blaze while they were working in the Blue disco on the second floor of the ITC and two of them had been arrested and had confessed to causing the fire. The welders including Nguyen Phu Tin, Phan Viet Thanh and Giang Quoc Trung, hired by Lam Nghia Hoa, the owner of Thong Nam steel shop, were reportedly making a metal decoration frame for the disco at 1pm on October 29 when the hall's ceiling caught fire from a welding spark. The police summoned Hoa for interrogation on October 31 and continued their search for Trung.
32 injured victims remained in Cho Ray and Saigon hospitals for further treatment. A ceremony was also held to pray for peace for souls of the fire victims. On November 1, staff of ITC, in co-ordination with the police, returned goods to 82 shops.
The municipal Fatherland Front received nearly VND 300 million (about US $20,000) from agencies, organisations and individuals as relief to fire victims. The Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs Service received VND 220 million, including VND 150 million contributed by organisations and VND 70 million by individuals at the memorial service for victims on October 31.
Chinese Prime Minister Zhu Rongji, President of the Slovak Republic Rudolf Schuster and British Prime Minister Tony Blair sent messages of condolence to Vietnamese leaders over the Ho Chi Minh City's ITC fire.
Memorial service held
A memorial service for victims of the inferno in the International Trade Centre was held in the city the evening of November 1 by the Party Committee, the People's Council, the People's Committee and the Fatherland Front Committee of the city. Nong Duc Manh, General Secretary of the Party Central Committee; Vu Khoan, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Deputy Prime Minister; Huynh Dam, member of the Party Central Committee, General Secretary of the Viet Nam Fatherland Front Central Committee; Nguyen Minh Triet, Politburo member of the Party Central Committee and Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee, attended the ceremony. Many consuls general of foreign countries in Ho Chi Minh City were present.
Le Thanh Hai, member of the Party Central Committee and Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, read words of memorial to the victims who died in the fire and extended deep condolences to beveaved families, Vietnamese and foreign agencies of the victims. He said the inferno caused great losses to victims' families, the people and leaders of the city as well as the Party, State and Fatherland Front leaders and the entire Vietnamese people. The same day, the National Assembly Standing Committee observed one minute of silence in memory of the fire victims during the committee's current second session in Ha Noi.
Three more persons relating to fire arrested
On November 4, Ho Chi Minh city police arrested three more persons relating to the fire. These included Lam Nghia Hoa, born in 1958, owner of Thong Nam steel shop in Calmette road, District 1 for his irresponsibility, causing serious consequences and violations in fire prevention and control; Huynh Quy, born in 1970 and Huynh Quang, born 1972, servicemen of the Blue disco where the fire started for their irresponsibility in monitoring the welding work.
Two arrested for irresponsibility in ITC fire
Ho Chi Minh City Investigation Police decided to prosecute and arrest Le Ngoc Thuy, 31, vice head of board of managers of Blue disco, and Luu Nhat Tuan, 25, a manager of the Blue disco on November 27. They were charged for irresponsibility causing serious consequences.
The same day, the police searched the two men’s houses collecting papers and computers etc. Besides, the investigation police prohibited Nguyen Trong Cuong, 42, who was the head of the management board of Blue disco from going out of his residence. Thus far, seven people had been arrested, one being tracked down and one prohibited from going out of residence.