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Four people died in a fire that destroyed an apartment building in Yokote, Akita Prefecture, on Tuesday morning. Ten other residents were injured, while one remains unaccounted for.
According to police, a local resident called 119 just after 1 a.m. to report that flames were coming from the building.
The two-story wooden building has 25 residents, Fuji TV reported. Police and firefighters said that two people were confirmed dead at the scene. Their bodies were charred and identification was not possible, police said. A third body was found in the ruins on Tuesday afternoon.
Eleven other residents were taken to hospital, including one man who was pronounced dead on arrival.
One other tenant of the building remains unaccounted for, police said.
Firefighters said it took about five hours to extinguish the blaze which also destroyed three neighboring buildings. The 30-year-old building had no sprinkler system, firefighters said.
The residents, aged from their 20s to 70s, live alone and 12 of them are on welfare. Another 17 were undergoing psychiatric treatment, local media said. The rent was 52,000 yen a month, including two meals.
The building caretaker lived on the second floor.
© Japan Today
10 Comments
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gogogo
Criminal , no sprinkler system! I hope charges are filed
bosphorus
Too sad. Sprinklers must be installed in every apartment building, it doesn't cost too much and would save many lives. Also it is sad that 13 of 25 residents were on welfare, sounds like the future of Japan if economic miracle doesn't happen.
ListenTheTruth
Japan, it is of the utmost importance to be honest with language, it is not DV --for example-- in Japanese word, in this case the word in English would be ‘slum’ housing. NOT apartment.
bjohnson23
wow this is sad. What did the owner do with all that rent money? That much tax? Doubtful there could have been a bank loan. If the recipients were getting welfare, the owner was getting the share of rent.
pacint
Sounds like it was a Hostel type affair (seen them here) 2 to a room, small dining area/kitchen, communal toilets and a sentou style bath.
News reported they were charged around 59.000/month incl. 2 hot meals.
Those are often used by working welfare recipients before they can rent their own place.
thepersoniamnow
Most apartment buildings in Japan have no sprinkler systems.
sf2k
Rats. RIP. Lack of concrete and a lot of wood would have made short work of the building.
People are commenting on the lack of sprinklers, but I would say every apartment I've lived in didn't have sprinkler systems either. Alarms yes, but full sprinklers are only in offices, schools, and or hospitals. Look about your room where ever you are in the world, I wonder if anyone does? It would seem then this is not something out of the ordinary.
Jeff Huffman
gogogoAug. 22 04:04 pm JST Criminal , no sprinkler system! I hope charges are filed
Having been built in the 1980s, it's unlikely that sprinklers would have been required. Regardless, Japan's residential building code is a mess
sf2kToday 04:27 am JST People are commenting on the lack of sprinklers, but I would say every apartment I've lived in didn't have sprinkler systems either. Alarms yes, but full sprinklers are only in offices, schools, and or hospitals.
Unless the school was built recently, I don't think you'll find sprinklers there either.
I've never lived in an apartment building that wasn't at least 40 years old
Andy
The scary thing is there are plenty of apartment buildings around Japan that look they were built with this very same charred stockpile.