PHUKET: Tiger Disco owner Piya Isaramalai went to Patong police soon after an inferno destroyed the nightclub, killing four people, and was questioned for 12 hours, he reveals today.
In a long exclusive interview with a Thai news outlet, Khun Piya discloses:
..that he was among those in the disco on Friday morning and jumped for his life from the upstairs disco area;
.. that Tiger Group lawyer Tamrongsak Boonrak accompanied him to police, with all relevant documents, for the 12-hour interview;
..that Simon Cabaret's owners also own the land on which the Tiger Discotheque and bar complex stands in Soi Bangla;
..that efforts are being made to find alternatives for 1000 Tiger staff and independent bar owners;
..that attention is now centred on the indoor dance balcony around the main dance floor [where the four people are believed to have been trapped by flames.]
Khun Piya said in the interview that the disco had been open for 13 years and that a contract had recently been signed for the lease to be extended for another six years.
In the aftermath of the blaze, he planned to have the building demolished and returned to the property's owners.
Damage was estimated at 100 million baht but insurance only covered 60 million baht, he said.
If at some point a long-term contract could be renegotiated, Tiger might be tempted to rebuild.
About 1000 people were now out of work because of the blaze - there were 30 bars in the disco and a total of 80 in the Tiger complex.
All the Tiger staff were being reemployed at other Tiger Group businesses in Patong, including the new Tiger Live Band complex on Soi Bangla.
Space would also be found at Tiger Live Band for the bars that were forced to close because of the blaze, Khun Piya said in the interview.
He said he had provided police in Patong with photographs and video evidence that supported his contention that a lightning strike during Friday morning's storm ignited the blaze.
All relevant documents concerning the permission for the building had been handed over the police, he said, including documents concerning the erection of the dance balcony.
He would cover the hospital costs of critically burned Frenchman Benjamin Tallanotte, 30, and others injured and compensate the families of the dead.
In the disco when the fire broke out, Khun Piya said he instructed staff to train fire extinguishers on the flames. A short time later he was among the last to flee the building.
He emphasised that it was only because of the heavy and prolonged rain storm that patrons were still in the disco.
Khun Piya was emotional during the interview, according to the account, and apologised profusely to neighboring Patong businesses, and to the tourism industry in general.
In a long exclusive interview with a Thai news outlet, Khun Piya discloses:
..that he was among those in the disco on Friday morning and jumped for his life from the upstairs disco area;
.. that Tiger Group lawyer Tamrongsak Boonrak accompanied him to police, with all relevant documents, for the 12-hour interview;
..that Simon Cabaret's owners also own the land on which the Tiger Discotheque and bar complex stands in Soi Bangla;
..that efforts are being made to find alternatives for 1000 Tiger staff and independent bar owners;
..that attention is now centred on the indoor dance balcony around the main dance floor [where the four people are believed to have been trapped by flames.]
Khun Piya said in the interview that the disco had been open for 13 years and that a contract had recently been signed for the lease to be extended for another six years.
In the aftermath of the blaze, he planned to have the building demolished and returned to the property's owners.
Damage was estimated at 100 million baht but insurance only covered 60 million baht, he said.
If at some point a long-term contract could be renegotiated, Tiger might be tempted to rebuild.
About 1000 people were now out of work because of the blaze - there were 30 bars in the disco and a total of 80 in the Tiger complex.
All the Tiger staff were being reemployed at other Tiger Group businesses in Patong, including the new Tiger Live Band complex on Soi Bangla.
Space would also be found at Tiger Live Band for the bars that were forced to close because of the blaze, Khun Piya said in the interview.
He said he had provided police in Patong with photographs and video evidence that supported his contention that a lightning strike during Friday morning's storm ignited the blaze.
All relevant documents concerning the permission for the building had been handed over the police, he said, including documents concerning the erection of the dance balcony.
He would cover the hospital costs of critically burned Frenchman Benjamin Tallanotte, 30, and others injured and compensate the families of the dead.
In the disco when the fire broke out, Khun Piya said he instructed staff to train fire extinguishers on the flames. A short time later he was among the last to flee the building.
He emphasised that it was only because of the heavy and prolonged rain storm that patrons were still in the disco.
Khun Piya was emotional during the interview, according to the account, and apologised profusely to neighboring Patong businesses, and to the tourism industry in general.
" He emphasised that it was only because of the heavy and prolonged rain storm that patrons were still in the disco. "
yeah, right
Posted by larry on August 20, 2012 11:28