Forensic examination due today at Bangkok’s Khlong Thom Center fire site

Forensic officers and Bangkok Metropolitan Administration engineers were due to enter Bangkok’s Khlong Thom Center at 8 a.m. Monday to begin examining the site of Friday night’s fire. The building remained closed after part of its second floor collapsed into the lower shopping area, leaving beams, columns and debris blocking access.

Police said more than 100 witnesses and victims had been questioned. Initial assessments found that the fire damaged property housing about 100 business operators and roughly 300 stalls. Around 10 people were injured, most after inhaling smoke or being struck by falling debris. No fatalities were reported.

Maj Gen Chaiyot Phah-oh, commander of Metropolitan Police Division 6, said investigators had so far found no clues indicating that the blaze was arson. Police were waiting for the forensic examination and a structural assessment before determining the cause of the fire.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration said its engineers would inspect the building’s electrical system and records of people entering and leaving the premises. Officials were also coordinating with structural experts to determine which damaged sections could be safely removed, allowing access to remaining hot spots. Some materials could still act as fuel and trigger flare-ups.

Police continued guarding the site around the clock, while business operators remained barred from entering because the structure was considered unsafe. Deputy Bangkok governor Pornphrom Vikitsreth said air-quality monitoring would continue near the site and in surrounding areas, with dust and gas pollution expected to decline.