Massive Khlong Thom Center Fire Leaves 11 Injured as Bangkok Landmark Partially Collapses
BANGKOK — A massive overnight fire tore through Bangkok’s well-known Khlong Thom Center, injuring at least 11 people and severely damaging parts of the popular electronics and tools shopping complex before firefighters finally brought the blaze under control early Saturday.
The fire broke out at approximately 8:42 p.m. on Friday, August 28, inside Khlong Thom Center on Worachak Road in Bangkok’s Pom Prap Sattru Phai district.
Initial reports indicated that flames began in a ground-floor shop area packed with merchandise before rapidly spreading across the first floor and into a mezzanine beneath the building’s parking levels.
Khlong Thom Center — also frequently styled Klongthom Center — is one of Bangkok’s best-known commercial hubs for tools, electronics, automotive accessories, audio equipment, toys, models and household products. The concentration of merchandise inside the building provided firefighters with an especially difficult environment as flames intensified.
Explosions Heard as Fire Spread
Within less than an hour of the initial emergency call, the blaze had engulfed much of the ground floor and mezzanine.
Firefighters from numerous stations across Bangkok were deployed to the scene, including crews from Suan Mali, Phaya Thai, Banthat Thong, Bang Rak, Phu Khao Thong, Samsen, Phahon Yothin, Bang Pho and Sutthisan.
As the fire intensified, responders reported hearing intermittent explosions inside the complex.
Authorities subsequently withdrew personnel from parts of the building because extreme heat had weakened its steel structure. Sections of the roof and other structural elements began to subside, raising fears that a wider collapse could occur.
Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt, who went to the scene, said the intense heat posed a serious structural danger and firefighters were instructed to attack much of the blaze from outside rather than risk entering the building.
Officials said walls surrounding parts of the complex also made it difficult for water streams to reach burning material deep inside.
Fire Reignites After Initial Containment
Authorities initially reported the fire under control at approximately 11:13 p.m. Friday.
But the emergency was not over.
Around 12:35 a.m. Saturday, flames erupted again in an adjoining building, with accumulated heat suspected of triggering the flare-up. Reports indicated that solar panels and other electrical or automotive-related merchandise were among materials present in the surrounding commercial structures.
Firefighters were forced to resume intensive suppression efforts.
Thai PBS later reported that the fire was finally brought under control throughout the affected area at approximately 5:32 a.m. on August 29, more than eight hours after the first emergency report. Crews continued spraying water onto the damaged structure afterward to prevent further flare-ups.
11 People Injured, No Deaths Reported
Early reports listed fewer casualties, but the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration's Erawan emergency medical center later put the total at 11 injured.
According to Thai PBS, one injured volunteer firefighter was classified as critically ill after suffering smoke inhalation. Another victim was considered moderately serious, while nine others sustained minor injuries.
No fatalities had been reported as of Saturday morning.
The changing casualty count reflects updates issued as authorities consolidated information from hospitals and emergency teams following the overnight operation.
Structural Collapse Remains a Major Concern
Even after the flames were brought under control, officials warned that the danger surrounding Khlong Thom Center had not ended.
Parts of the building's steel structure were left weakened and distorted by prolonged exposure to extreme heat, and authorities blocked access to the site while engineers and emergency crews assessed its stability.
Governor Chadchart said some areas remained difficult to extinguish completely because water could not easily penetrate sections of the steel-framed structure. Authorities were preparing to use heavy machinery to remove debris and expose remaining hotspots.
The Pom Prap Sattru Phai District Office has also begun registering people and businesses affected by the blaze as officials assess the scale of the property damage.
What Caused the Khlong Thom Center Fire?
For now, that remains one of the biggest unanswered questions.
Authorities have not announced an official cause of the fire.
Police and forensic investigators are expected to examine the damaged building and collect evidence once structural conditions allow investigators to enter safely.
Officials will also have to determine the extent of the financial damage to businesses inside one of Bangkok's most recognizable electronics and hardware shopping areas.
The investigation will now focus not only on how the fire began, but also on how it spread so rapidly through the densely stocked commercial complex — and whether anything could have prevented one of central Bangkok's most dramatic fires in recent years.