At least 27 people died in a fire in an eight-story office building in Osaka, Japan, this Friday (17). According to local media, police are investigating suspected arson.
There is a report that a man started the fire, according to Kyodo News. Sources linked to the investigation said a man entered the building with a package, allegedly containing a flammable liquid. He would be a patient at a general and mental health clinic that operated there.
An Osaka Fire Department official told AFP that 27 people suffered cardiac arrest and were taken to a hospital. An injured person was rescued.
The fire started shortly after the building opened, at around 10 am, on the fourth floor. The fire was out in 30 minutes.
A video shows smoke pouring out of fourth-floor windows and roof, as well as burning and charred windows. Television footage showed dozens of firefighters working in the building after the fire had gone out.
“When I looked outside, I saw orange flames in the fourth-floor window of the building. A woman was waving her hands for help from the sixth-floor window,” said a woman who works at a nearby company.
Another woman said she saw smoke coming out of the window and reported that power had briefly gone out in the area.
Located in a commercial and entertainment district, the building also houses a beauty salon, a clothing store and an English school.
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