Elderly bedridden woman dies in Mueang Chonburi house fire, brother survives, hoarding suspected as possible cause

Chonburi –

A sixty-five-year-old elderly woman who was bedridden tragically died in a house that caught fire in Mueang Chonburi on Thursday morning.

The Mueang Chonburi Police were notified of the incident Thursday morning (July 29th) at a two-story older wooden home on Sukhumvit Road in Bang Sai.

Firefighters with fire engines and The Pattaya News arrived at the scene to find the house was heavily ablaze.

It took about 30 minutes for firefighters to control the fire. The body of Mrs. Kasem Rueangsri, 65, was found inside the house which had been devastated by the blaze. The home was barely passable with cluttered belongings and gatherings, with neighbors stating the brother of the victim is a hoarder.

Mr. Jinda Rueangsri, 82, who is the elder brother of Mrs. Kasem had been injured from the blaze but managed to survive his injuries and was rescued by firefighters. He was taken to a local hospital for medical assistance.

Mr. Mana Nimanpoot, 55, a neighbor, told Pattaya News reporters “I heard banging sounds and then looked out my window and saw, to my shock, the blaze. I immediately called the fire department for assistance.”

“Only the brother and sister lived in the house. Mrs. Kasem was bedridden with multiple illnesses and Mr. Jinda has mental health issues, although his physical health is intact.” Mana stated.

“Mr. Jinda is a hoarder and collected garbage at the house to the point where it was nearly impossible to get around. I used to warn him his hoarding of various materials could cause a blaze.” Mana added.

Mueang Chonburi police are continuing their investigation to find the exact cause of the fire and have not yet said if the hoarding of Mr. Jinda was the definitive cause.