John

A fire in a popular hotel early Wednesday injured 16 people, and it took three hours to extinguish because the 30-year-old building had no sprinkler system, a police official said.

The blaze at the downtown Mandarin Hotel began shortly after midnight in a second-floor room and forced hundreds of guests to flee, said Lt. Col. Chakarin Panthong.

Sixteen people -- all foreign tourists -- suffered smoke inhalation and were hospitalized, he said. About 400 other guests were evacuated safely.

(Newsday)

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