Kaohsiung Fire Claims Three Lives, Injures Two Others.

Kaohsiung: Three people were killed and two seriously injured in a fire that broke out early Thursday morning at a traditional Taiwanese three-story house in Kaohsiung, the city's fire bureau reported. The incident has left the local community in shock and mourning. According to Focus Taiwan, the deceased include an unidentified woman and two men, who were the older brother and son of a 61-year-old man surnamed Tung. The woman and Tung's brother were found dead at the scene when fire personnel arrived. Tung's son was alive upon discovery but succumbed to his injuries despite being rushed to the hospital. Tung and his wife, surnamed Wang, 55, sustained critical injuries and are currently receiving intensive care at Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital and Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital, respectively, as stated by the Kaohsiung Police Department Sanmin Second Precinct on Thursday morning. The fire bureau received a report of the fire at a residence on Dingzhong Road in the Sanmin Dist rict at 12:38 a.m., and promptly dispatched 22 vehicles and 50 personnel to the scene. The blaze was successfully extinguished by 3:40 a.m. The three deceased were discovered on the third floor, while Tung and Wang were found on the second floor of the house. Preliminary observations from the fire bureau suggest that the fire originated on the first floor and spread upward through the house. A thorough investigation is currently underway to determine the exact cause of the blaze. A neighbor, speaking to the press on Thursday morning, described Tung as a well-liked member of the community. Tung, a plumber and electrician, was known for hosting neighbors for meals and gatherings at his home. The neighbor expressed doubt that the incident was caused by a vendetta.