SEOUL: At least 29 people were killed and 26 injured Thursday in a major blaze at a fitness centre building in the South Korean city of Jecheon, officials said, in one of the country's deadliest fire disasters. Twenty victims were found at a public sauna and others elsewhere in the building that houses a fitness centre, public bath and restaurants, the National Fire Agency said. "The fire produced so much toxic smoke so quickly, leaving many people unable to evacuate," an agency spokesman said. The death toll may rise further as firefighters continue to search the building, the spokesman said. The fire is South Korea's worst since 2008 when a blaze at a warehouse in the city of Icheon killed 40 workers.

Source: New Strait Times December 21, 2017 12:22 UTC