A fire that tore through a packed live-music pub in northern Bangkok late on Sunday has killed 32 people, according to Thai medical officials, making it one of the deadliest entertainment-venue blazes in the country in recent years. Witnesses described an explosion and a horizontal wall of flames that rapidly filled the single-storey Rong Beer Na Lat Phrao venue in the Chatuchak district, trapping scores of patrons as a band played.

As of Wednesday, 30 people remained hospitalised across the capital, 15 of them in intensive care, while 44 had been discharged, the Erawan Emergency Medical Centre reported. All but one of the dead were Thai nationals; a staff member from Laos was also among the victims, local authorities said. No other foreign casualties have been confirmed.

Investigators believe an electrical short circuit in a ceiling air conditioner most likely sparked the blaze, but they are also examining whether negligence contributed to the high death toll. Police are probing reports that emergency exits were obstructed and that staff may have locked doors to prevent customers from leaving without paying, according to Thai media accounts. The pub had passed a safety inspection in April, yet authorities are now questioning whether it was operating as an unlicensed entertainment venue under a restaurant permit, potentially circumventing stricter fire codes.

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul ordered nationwide inspections of nightlife establishments and public buildings within 30 days, with venues found to have serious deficiencies to be closed until rectified. The disaster has revived long-standing concerns over fire safety in Thailand’s entertainment sector, where flammable acoustic materials, overcrowding, and blocked exits were previously flagged after a 2009 Bangkok nightclub fire killed at least 65 people. The investigation remains ongoing, and the death toll is considered provisional.