Fire Kills Three in Tainan's Yongkang 台南火警疑烤肉釀火災 警消灌救

A residential fire was reported in Tainan's Yongkang District on the evening of Sept. 11. The fire left killed three people, including a couple and their granddaughter. A second granddaughter managed to escape. The Fire Bureau says the fire may have been caused by a hot plate plugged into an extension cord.

A fire broke out in Tainan's Yongkang District on the evening of Sept. 11, frightening area residents.

Hsu Chien-kuo, Tainan City Fuguo Borough Chief: “When we came outside, we saw dense smoke coming from the garage. After that, the fire erupted. Firefighters got here very quickly.”

The 90-year-old owner of the house, surnamed Wang, was the local neighborhood chief and his 70-year-old wife was bedridden. Firefighters believe the fire started when the couple's two granddaughters, aged 20 and 17, plugged an electric grill into an extension cord. After extinguishing the fire, firefighters found the bodies of the couple and the 20-year-old granddaughter. Only the 17-year-old granddaughter escaped.

17-year-old Granddaughter: “They were probably preparing to come down for dinner. I was on the first floor and I was hungry, so I thought I'd start cooking. Three minutes later, there was an explosion. I yelled at my sister to go upstairs and tell them, but there wasn't enough time. The fire was too big.”

Because the first floor of the house was very cluttered, the fire spread quickly. Tainan City Mayor Huang Wei-cher rushed to the scene.

Cheng Chih-feng, Tainan City Fire Bureau 5th District HQ Chief: “The first and second floors were completely on fire when we arrived on the scene. The fire spread very quickly due to clutter.”

Huang Wei-cher, Tainan City Mayor: “Once again, we remind everyone about the dangers of clutter, especially flammable objects. Evacuation routes should also be kept clear. This case shows the hazards of a cluttered home.”

The fire bureau says hot plates and electric grills should never be plugged into extension cords or power strips and they should also never be used in areas filled with clutter.

陣陣濃煙伴隨著火舌不斷竄出，中秋連假最後一天的傍晚，台南市永康區復國一路一間民宅發生大火，附近鄰居都嚇得跑出來了解發生什麼事，消防車的水線也綿延數十公尺持續灌救。

台南市復國里長許建國表示：「一開始我們出來的時候，就看到車庫這邊有濃煙，那接著大火就出來，那很快消防隊就過來了。」

90歲的王姓屋主是當地鄰長，70歲的妻子長期臥病在床，當晚20歲與17歲兩名孫女在一樓疑似想要使用電烤盤烤肉，結果延長線意外爆炸，火勢立即延燒。消防人員把火勢撲滅後，在二樓找到屋主妻子已經明顯死亡，王姓屋主及20歲孫女也當場失去生命跡象，送醫後不治，只有17歲孫女順利逃出。

17歲孫女說：「他們應該是要準備下來吃飯了，然後我就在一樓，我就先我就想說我有點餓，我就想先烤肉，然後就3分鐘之後，然後就爆炸了，我就叫姊姊上去叫他們，然後就來不及，火就太大了。」

由於一樓堆放大量雜物，火勢迅速蔓延也導致救援困難，釀成三死悲劇，台南市長黃偉哲也趕赴現場關心。

台南消防局第五大隊大隊長鄭誌峰指出：「到達的時候一樓二樓全面燃燒，主要是因為它裡面火災量很大，因為他阿公大概會堆積一些雜物。」
 

台南市長黃偉哲表示：「這個事情我們真的是三令五申，再三呼籲屋內不要堆置易燃物品，也不要阻擋逃生通道，那這個事情就是血淋淋活生生的例子。」

火調科初步調查，疑似在客廳使用延長線接上電烤盤不慎引燃火勢。消防局提醒，因為電烤盤或烤爐耗電量大，用這類產品時，不要插在延長線上，避免電力負荷過載引燃大火，烤肉時也要特別注意周遭不要堆積過多雜物，多一分留意，才能安心過節。