According to the Vietnam Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei, the deadly blaze has claimed lives of five local firefighters and some foreign workers, but not including Vietnamese.

A total of 161 Vietnamese workers are working at Chin Poon Industrial Co., a rigid printed circuit board producer in Taoyuan. At the time of the fire, most of the workers were at work while some asked for a leave from work to meet friends.

Shortly after the accident occurred, the Vietnam Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei coordinated with the Taoyuan authority and the Vietnamese brides’ association to provide foods and water for the affected workers. The office also asked the labour brokers, who introduced the Vietnamese workers to work in Taiwan, to work with the factory to offer them temporary accommodation.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has directed the office to continue keeping a close watch on the incident and get updates on investigation findings from the local authority. The office was also tasked to cooperate with relevant agencies and companies to help the Vietnamese workers return to soon normal life.-VNA