Fire at karaoke parlor in southern Vietnam kills 14

At least 14 people died in a fire that broke out at a karaoke parlor in southern Vietnam, local media reported Wednesday.

At least 40 other people were injured in the fire at the four-story venue in Thuan An city in the province of Binh Duong that began at about 9 p.m. Tuesday, trapping staff and customers inside, according to reports on the websites of Tuoi Tre newspaper and other Vietnamese media.

They said the fire was under control within an hour but still smoldering on Wednesday, more than 12 hours later.

The reports said some people were injured from asphyxiation and others with broken limbs when they jumped from upper floors to try to escape the fire. Firefighters using ladders from their trucks managed to rescue others.

Provincial authorities said they were investigating the cause of the blaze, which broke out on the second or third floor.

Enforcement of safety standards at entertainment venues in many parts of Southeast Asia is sometimes lax and believed to contribute to multiple deaths in case of fires.

Police in Thailand said that a pub in the eastern province of Chonburi was presenting live entertainment without a license when a fire broke out in early August, trapping many people inside because exits were blocked or locked.

Twenty-three people had died from that fire so far, 13 of them on the night of the blaze and 10 in the month since then. Many had serious burns over most of their bodies, which are extremely difficult to guard against deadly infections. At least five other victims are believed to still be on ventilators.