Checking power cables and transformers following catastrophic Bangkok Chinatown fire

Although the scene did not offer any conclusive evidence that the transformer was to blame, Thanes Weerasiri, president of the Engineering Institute of Thailand, believes that there is a chance that the fire was started by communications and power wires. After a fire on Sunday at the crowded Sampeng market in Chinatown claimed the lives of two people, the governor of Bangkok, Chadchart Sittipunt, called for an investigation into the safety of the almost 400 power transformers and power cables encircling Bangkok. Although the transformer in question was scheduled for a safety assessment in 2021, it was first asserted to be the fire’s primary cause. On Sunday, the MEA formally accepted the responsibility. The BMA will work with the MEA to carry out the inspections, and the MEA will also work with the police, the Metropolitan Waterworks Authority, and other organizations to find a solution in an effort to prevent another fatal fire caused by faulty equipment or inadequate inspection procedures. To avoid frequent failures, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration would speed the underground re-installation of electrical wires in the area.


The estimated cost of the damage is 30 million Thai Baht. Eyewitnesses reported that smoke was coming from the power transformer before the fire spread to the neighboring shophouses, some of which sold paper and cardboard boxes. An initial inspection has been done by police, engineers, City Hall, the MEA, and representatives from the Samphanthawong district.