Five Killed in Fire at Siem Reap Nightclub

Click to read an updated version of this article from Wednesday’s newspaper.

Five people, including an Australian national, were killed early Tuesday morning in an apparent electrical fire at a nightclub in Siem Reap City, police confirmed.

The fire started in the ceiling of the Hip Hop Club at about 2:50 a.m. and spread quickly, killing three Cambodian women, a Cambodian man and the Australian, said Tith Narong, Siem Reap City police chief.

Two Cambodian women were also seriously injured, he said.

Police identified the Australian as Tom Anthony Ricketson, 32, and said that two of the four Cambodian victims were Prum Phiron, 31, and Cheng Savien, 33.

Mr. Narong said the Hip Hop Club, popular among young Cambodians, had no windows and only one door, hindering escape.

“The nightclub had no windows and it has only one door, and there were too many electrical wires in the ceiling,” he said.

“We used six fire trucks to put out the fire until 5 a.m.”

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Note: This story has been updated to include the nationality of the foreigner. Police initially reported that the foreign victim was European.

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