Posted on 05/26/2008 1:51:53 AM PDT by HAL9000
Excerpt -
Fire broke out early Monday and seriously damaged the top floor of the Burmese embassy on Sathorn Road, but there were no injuries, police officials said.They said the fire, which occurred after sunrise, was brought under control within 30 minutes but that there was a significant amount of smoke.
The roof of the building collpased during the blaze, prompting officials at the embassy to move their cars out of the area.
"The blaze broke out on the top floor, in a room full of documents and filing cabinets," firefighter Niwat Jootawong told a reporter of the AFP news agency. "That floor is basically burnt down. There's also a little damage on the ground floor."
"It was an accident," said Pol Maj Thanyaboon Thonjalatwong. "There were no injuries, and we've ruled out sabotage."
The embassy closed its visa section.
The fire coincided with mounting confusion within the international aid community over whether the Burmese junta will follow up on commitments to grant more visas to aid workers seeking to enter the country to meet the desperate needs of some 2.4 million people affected by Cyclone Nargis.
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