(Photo/CGTN)

TAIPEI, May 19 (Xinhua) -- At least four were killed and 50 were hospitalized after a nursing home caught fire in Taiwan early Friday, local media reported.

About 150 people were at the nursing center when the fire broke out, some 50 have been sent to the hospital, with 24 suffering from smoke inhalation, according to local police.

Preliminary investigation showed the fire broke out on the second floor of the Nanmen Nursing Home at about 5 a.m. in Hengchun Township, southern Taiwan's Pingtung County. Firefighters had put off the fire soon after arrival.

The Nanmen nursing home was established in 2004, offering health care services to the senior and patients that require home care.

Further investigation continues.