OFFICIAL PORTAL
PRIME MINISTER'S DEPARTMENT
NATIONAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT AGENCY
PRIME MINISTER'S DEPARTMENT
NATIONAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT AGENCY
BANGKOK: A Thai court issued arrest warrants on Thursday (May 15) for 17 people over the collapse of a Bangkok skyscraper that fell in a major earthquake, killing dozens of workers.
The 30-storey tower being built to house the State Audit Office was reduced to rubble in seconds when a 7.7-magnitude quake struck neighbouring Myanmar on March 28, killing thousands in Thailand's wartorn neighbour.
The tower was the only building in Bangkok to collapse, and the speed and suddenness with which it fell has raised questions about the quality of the construction.
"A Thai court today issued arrest warrants against three groups, comprising 17 people, related to the collapse," Police Lieutenant-General Siam Boonsom told AFP.
He did not give details of those targeted by the warrants, but Thai media reports said they include staff from Italian-Thai Development (ITD), one of the firms building the tower.
Authorities say they have recovered 89 bodies from the rubble of the collapsed tower, with seven people still unaccounted for.
The project was a joint venture between ITD -- one of Thailand's biggest construction firms -- and a Chinese conglomerate.
Initial tests by Thai safety officials last month on steel rebars -- struts used to reinforce concrete -- recovered from the site found that some of the metal used was substandard. - AFP
Ottawa: Dua penduduk maut, manakala 1,000 lagi terpaksa dipindahkan selepas kebakaran hutan besar melanda kawasan tengah Kanada, sekali gus mencetuskan kebimbangan berhubung musim kebakaran yang dijangka lebih mencabar tahun ini.
Polis Diraja Kanada (RCMP) berkata, mangsa maut itu terbabit dalam kebakaran berlaku di komuniti kecil Lac-du-Bonnet, wilayah Manitoba yang ketika ini mengalami cuaca luar biasa panas, kering dan berangin.
Pegawai RCMP, Chris Hastie memaklumkan, pihak berkuasa dimaklumkan mangsa terperangkap dalam kebakaran, namun pasukan penyelamat hanya dapat tiba ke lokasi pada keesokan paginya berikutan keadaan ekstrem.
"Setakat ini, tiada laporan orang lain hilang," katanya. Kebakaran itu memaksa 1,000 penduduk Lac-du-Bonnet yang terletak kira-kira 100 kilometer di utara Winnipeg dipindahkan. Beberapa arahan pemindahan lain turut dikeluarkan di kawasan sekitarnya, sejak beberapa hari lalu.
Pihak berkuasa memaklumkan terdapat 24 kebakaran aktif di Manitoba, dengan lima daripadanya masih tidak terkawal. Satu kebakaran di sempadan Ontario pula merebak sehingga 100,000 hektar.
Ketika ini, terdapat 92 kebakaran aktif di seluruh Kanada termasuk di British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba dan Ontario.
MONTREAL: A major wildfire burning in central Canada has killed two people, police said Wednesday, and forced 1,000 more to evacuate their homes, kicking off a fire season authorities warn could prove challenging.
Canada has endured a series of significant forest fires in recent years, but deaths involving residents are rare.
In 2023, the worst wildfire season in the country's history, the only recorded deaths were among firefighters.
Canadian federal police confirmed Wednesday that two people died in the small community of Lac-du-Bonnet, in the central province of Manitoba, which is experiencing unusually hot, dry and windy conditions.
Chris Hastie of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) told reporters that authorities “were aware that these individuals had been trapped in the fire.”
“Due to extreme conditions yesterday afternoon, emergency personnel were not able to reach the location until this morning,“ Hastie added.
There were no reports of additional people unaccounted for, Hastie said.
Manitoba’s Premier Wab Kinew said he was “deeply saddened to learn of the tragic loss of two Manitobans due to the wildfires.”
“My heart goes out to their loved ones,“ he added in a post on X.
Evacuations
Several evacuation orders have been issued in recent days in Manitoba, including in Lac-du-Bonnet, where 1,000 people have been ordered to leave their homes.
“This is a truly tragic event. We are a very close-knit community here,“ Loren Schinkel, the head of the community 100 kilometres (62 miles) north of Winnipeg, said after the deaths were confirmed.
Speaking to AFP earlier, Schinkel had said strong winds from the south were driving the fire's spread, but that the situation appeared stable on Wednesday morning.
There are 24 active fires in Manitoba, five of which are considered out of control, authorities said.
One fire burning on the Ontario border has spread across 100,000 hectares.
“We are looking at obviously very challenging conditions,“ said Kristin Hayward of the Manitoba Wildfire Service, citing hot, dry weather.
“We have had some very windy days, and we expect that to continue,“ she added, speaking before the fatalities were confirmed.
There are currently 92 active fires across Canada, including in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario.
Authorities have warned the wildfire season in central and western Canada could be more intense than normal due to drought conditions affecting several areas.
Climate change has increased the impact of extreme weather events in Canada.
MANITOBA, 15 Mei– Sekurang-kurangnya dua maut manakala hampir 1,000 penduduk dipindahkan susulan kebakaran hutan yang melanda wilayah Manitoba, Kanada, pada Rabu.
Polis Persekutuan Kanada mengesahkan kedua-dua mangsa terkorban di kawasan Lac du Bonnet yang terjejas teruk akibat cuaca panas, kering dan berangin, antara faktor utama menyumbang kepada kebakaran.
Pihak berkuasa tempatan memberi amaran bahawa insiden itu berkemungkinan menandakan permulaan musim kebakaran yang serius tahun ini.
Terdahulu, tular rakaman video suasana cemas apabila api marak membakar hutan, dengan asap tebal dan api menjulang, dirakam seorang saksi daripada dalam kenderaan.– REUTERS
SEVILLE - Kira-kira 77,000 penduduk diarahkan untuk berada di dalam rumah susulan kebakaran di sebuah gudang bahan kimia di bandar Alcala de Guadaira, selatan Sepanyol, lapor Agensi Akhbar Jerman (dpa).
Pihak berkuasa tempatan menerusi kenyataan di platform X pada Rabu menggesa orang ramai supaya menutup pintu dan tingkap.
Bandar Andalusia itu terletak kira-kira 16 kilometer ke tenggara Seville. Bagaimanapun, angin yang bertiup dari arah barat dijangka membawa awan asap menjauhi bandar berkenaan.
Kebakaran di gudang yang terletak di kawasan perindustrian itu dilaporkan mencetuskan beberapa siri letupan. Rakaman televisyen menunjukkan kepulan asap hitam tebal membumbung tinggi dari kawasan gudang.
Setakat ini, tiada laporan awal mengenai kecederaan akibat kebakaran dan letupan tersebut atau pendedahan kepada asap toksik. Punca kebakaran masih belum diketahui.
Pihak berkuasa turut mengarahkan pemindahan penduduk atau pekerja dari kawasan perindustrian berkenaan.
Risiko keracunan belum dapat dipastikan, namun pihak berkuasa menegaskan bahawa arahan untuk berada di dalam rumah itu adalah langkah berjaga-jaga. - Bernama