Four people burnt to death in Phuket pub fire

Four people were killed and a dozen injured in a massive fire at a disco pub on Thailand's southern resort island Phuket early Friday.

The blaze broke out around 3.55 am on the second floor of the Tiger Pub on the island's popular western Patong beach, which was then filled with Thai and foreign tourists, reported Xinhua.

It took about an hour for the firefighters to bring the blaze under control. Early reports said four bodies were retrieved from the fire and 11 injured were taken to a hospital.

"But the four bodies were burnt and deformed and their identities can only be confirmed by pending DNA tests," he said.

Phuket Deputy Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada said the authorities believed the victims are foreign tourists but it is not yet confirmed.

The incident is under investigation. But according to Chamroen, the fire was probably caused by lightning which struck a transformer.u00a0