BANGKOK — A tragic fire broke out at 4-story commercial building in a residential area in Soi Chang Akat Uthit 15, Don Mueang District, Bangkok, late Sunday night, killing 21 cats which were under the care of a female traditional massage therapist.
Officials took 10 minutes to control the fire. There were no human injuries or fatalities. However, 21 cats on the second floor died. Officials managed to save 5 cats that had inhaled smoke. The owner cried, both saddened by the loss of the beloved cats and grateful that officials were able to save 5 of them.
Mrs. Aranya Sintravadhee, 65 years old, the cat owner, stated that she loves dogs and cats very much. She has been living in the room where the fire occurred for 3-4 years. At first, she brought only a few cats to raise. Later, when neighbours learned of her love for cats, they brought her newborn kittens, abused cats, or abandoned strays.
Feeling sorry for them, she ended up caring for nearly 30 cats and 1 dog, not knowing how many were male or female.
She works as a traditional massage therapist and lives alone in the room where the incident occurred. Her daily income from massages, just a few hundred baht, is used to buy cat food, spending over 10,000 baht per month. Additionally, there are expenses for vaccinating the dogs and cats. She cares for them as best she can with her limited resources.
Before the incident, someone came to take her out to massage a client. She locked the dog and cats in the room. Shortly after leaving, a neighbor called to inform her that her room was on fire. She rushed back to find the entire room ablaze.
“I feel so sorry for the cats that died. We were very attached after caring for them for so long. 21 cats died. The Ruamkatanyu Foundation will cremate them at a temple. The injured cats that survived have been sent to an animal hospital. I don’t know where I’ll get the money for their treatment. There’s also the dog I raised that I believe survived, but I don’t know where it went,” Aranya said.
On July 8, forensic officials inspected the scene to determine the cause of the fire.
________
