A fire in a psychiatric clinic in a building in the Japanese city of Osaka is believed to have killed 27 people on Friday. This was reported by public broadcaster NHK. According to Japanese media, the police have opened an investigation into a possible fire.
The fire broke out shortly after the clinic, located on the fourth floor of a multi-storey office building, opened its doors at 10 a.m. local time. Firefighters and ambulances were deployed widely and the flames were put out after about 30 minutes.
According to NHK, 27 people have been diagnosed with “cardio-respiratory arrest”. This expression is used in Japan when people are believed to have died, but their death has not yet been officially proven. Nine people were diagnosed with death in hospital.
The police suspect that she was set on fire. Japanese media quoted sources involved in the investigation as saying that an elderly man set the building on fire. It allegedly included a patient who brought a bag containing flammable liquid into the building and then set it on fire.
“When I looked outside, I saw orange flames on the fourth floor of the building. A woman waved for help from the window of the sixth floor,” a 36-year-old woman who was working in a nearby shop told Kyodo News.
Located in a shopping area not far from Osaka’s main train station, the building also houses a beauty salon, a clothing store, and an English school.
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