Fire kills 56 at apartment block in Vietnamese capital

Rescuers transfer an injured person in Khuong Dinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Vietnam, Sept. 13, 2023. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)

HANOI, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi.

Of the 56 fatalities, 39 have been identified, Vietnam News Agency reported.

A 44-year-old local man, the owner of the nine-story apartment block in Thanh Xuan district, has been prosecuted and detained for having violated regulations on fire prevention and fighting.

The fire broke out before Tuesday midnight at the first story of the block with a floor area of over 200 square meters in Khuong Dinh ward, where some 150 people live.

In the first eight months of this year, Vietnam saw 1,286 fires and explosions, which killed 69 people, injured 64 others, and caused property losses of nearly 200.7 billion Vietnamese dong (8.3 million U.S. dollars), the country's General Statistics Office said.

Rescuers transfer injured person in Khuong Dinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Vietnam, Sept. 13, 2023. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)

Rescuers transfer an injured person in Khuong Dinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Vietnam, Sept. 13, 2023. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)

This photo taken on Sept. 13, 2023 shows a view of the mini apartment block after a fire in Khuong Dinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Vietnam. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)

Rescuers transfer an injured person in Khuong Dinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Vietnam, Sept. 13, 2023. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)

Injured people receive medical treatment at a hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam, Sept. 13, 2023. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)

Rescuers transfer an injured person in Khuong Dinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Vietnam, Sept. 13, 2023. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)

This photo taken on Sept. 13, 2023 shows a view of the mini apartment block after a fire in Khuong Dinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Vietnam. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)

Investigators work at the site of a fire in Khuong Dinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Vietnam, Sept. 13, 2023. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)

This photo taken on Sept. 13, 2023 shows the mini apartment block on fire in Khuong Dinh ward, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Vietnam. A fire at a mini apartment block has killed 56 and injured 37 as of Wednesday evening in Vietnam's capital Hanoi. (VNA via Xinhua)