At least nine people have been reported dead in a fire at Weifu Hospital in Taiwan, and more than 30 people were left injured.
According to the reports, the fire broke out on in a ward on the seventh floor of the hospital in New Taipei City on Monday, August 13, 2018.
In addition, about 16 other people, including patients and staff, remain in a critical condition.
Hospital Fire
The fire erupted at around 4.30am on Monday and was put out shortly after dawn, mainly burning the seventh-floor hospice ward.
A video footage circling the internet showed patients being wheeled out of the building in their hospital beds, while medical workers took others out on stretchers and into ambulances.
Reports suggest that 33 patients and three staff members were evacuated, while a number of ambulances lined up outside the hospital waiting to take victims to medical centers.
Meanwhile, the cause of the fire is not yet clear, though media reports are saying that it could have been started by an electrical fault in a moveable bed.
According to state media outlet CNA, the police have found that the ward was not equipped with "required smoke exhaust equipment".
On the other hand, another report states that fires are common in Taiwan where fire prevention measures are not strictly enforced.
In addition, the fire that happened this year comes after the hospital fire that occurred last 2012, killing 12 patients and leaving at least 60 more people injured.
