At Least 13 Dead, 35 Injured In Thai Nightclub Fire; Authorities Investigate Cause

Thirteen people died after a massive fire broke out at a nightclub in Thailand in the early hours of Friday, the police said.

The incident took place in Chonburi province -- a tourist-favored resort destination in Thailand. The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.

A 17-year-old is reportedly one of the victims who died in the fire, the youngest fatality in the incident so far. Thirty five people were injured, of which 14 were severely impacted, the New York Post reported, citing Chonburi Emergency Service.

The bodies of four women and nine men, who died in the fire, were either found by the entrance or in the bathroom. Their bodies were found in extremely charred conditions, the police said. All victims so far have been identified as Thai nationals.

The fire started at the Mountain B nightclub, a fairly new venue, around 1 a.m. local time. The severity of the fire intensified due to inflammable acoustic panels fitted on the ceiling, local musician Taphone Namthan told CNN.

It took the firefighters more than three hours to control the blaze.

Namthan said the venue, which was inaugurated two months ago, attracted major footfall for its live performances. He added the keyboardist and replacement singer of the band performing Friday night had died in the fire. The drummer was reportedly on life support at a local hospital.

Namthan also highlighted the club didn't have separate designated areas for entry and exit. There was another door to the venue, but it was kept locked during performances, and was only used by musicians to enter and leave after their set.

This is a developing story.

In a similar incident in 2012, multiple people were left with severe injuries and several bodies were charred beyond recognition as a fire erupted at Tiger Pub in Phuket on Aug. 17. The cause of the fire was lightning, which struck a transformer and spread through the venue. "The four dead bodies were burnt beyond recognition. We cannot identify even their gender," then-deputy governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada had said then.