FOLLOWING two big fires with one being at Bonkai slum community, Rama 4 road, and the other at Sampeng market yesterday where two persons died Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittiphan today (June 27) moved to get Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) to check transformers across the capital while also speeding up burying cables underground, Sanook.com said.
Chadchart pointed out that there were two parts to this issue with one being internal and the other external.
Internally the chain of command and the process of putting out fires has to be looked into.
Externally the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) will be holding talks with MEA on controlling the risk of fires from transformers malfunctioning with there being around 400 of them in the inner area of Bangkok with cables too having to be checked.
BMA will also be expediting burying cables underground with communication cables too having to be moved underground faster and talks will be held with the Office of The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) on this issue.
Chadchart will also be holding talks with MEA, the Waterworks Authority and the police on preventing fires tomorrow afternoon (June 28).
Residents in the area had mentioned that before yesterday’s fire they had complained to MEA about the same transformer that exploded malfunction but repairs were delayed.
However Chadchart said MEA informed him that a transformer does not have fuel within it but this had to be delved into.
Meanwhile Ms. Arthitaya Chokkit-manatchai, head of Samphanthawong district, said preliminary investigation revealed that four shophouses were destroyed in the fire with damage being around 30 million baht.
Of the two persons who died at the scene one is a 35-year-old male and the other a female of unknown age. Eleven persons were hospitalised mostly from smoke inhalation but also for cuts.
Ms. Sopha Kiatniracha, an inspector from the Labour Ministry, both the deceased were covered by Social Security, with this cover extended to foreign workers too, and each is to receive a compensation of 50,000 baht. There is another compensation for the duration of work with the ministry to pay up to 70% of the wages depending on the length of service.
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The aftermath of the big fire at Sampeng market yesterday. Photos: Sanook.com
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