Nine Dead As Fire Guts Taiwan Hospital

Nine persons have died in a fire at a hospital in southern Taiwan, as the island was being battered by a typhoon.

The fire occurred at around 09:40 local time (01:00 GMT) in Pingtung county, which has been hit hard by Typhoon Krathon, which made landfall in the afternoon with torrential rains and heavy winds and has brought parts of the island to a standstill.

According to reports, those who died, inhaled smoke from the fire, while the source of the fire was still under investigation, though an alleged electrical fault is said to be the cause of the fire.

The fire was eventually put out three hours later, with the wet and windy weather slowing down response to the incident.

According to local media, about 300 patients were evacuated through the front entrance and transferred to ambulances or tarps, used to shield them from the pouring rain, as they were eventually moved to nearby shelters.