5 firefighters, 2 workers killed in Taiwan factory blaze

BEIJING — Taiwan is mourning the deaths of five firefighters and two Thai migrant workers in a weekend blaze at a computer equipment factory.

The fire broke out Saturday night at a plant belonging to Chin Poon Industrial in the city of Taoyuan just south of the capital, Taipei, the official Central News Agency reported.

CNA said the firefighters had lost contact with colleagues outside and became trapped under heavy equipment. Another seven firefighters were injured in the blaze, it said.

It quoted Chin Poon spokesman Hsiao Kung-yen as saying Sunday that the first fire alarm sounded in an area where thin layers of polymer are applied to printed circuit boards.

Large amounts of flammable chemicals apparently fueled the blaze and five firefighters were injured by being splashed with caustic and acidic materials. A total of 189 firefighters and 67 trucks and ambulances were sent to the scene of the fire, CNA said.

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The company has been cited on previous occasions for safety violations, the news agency said.

The Associated Press