As many as 10 people have died in a fire at a Cambodian hotel-casino on the border of Thailand, with photos showing groups desperately huddled on ledges as fierce flames surround them. The blaze at the Grand Diamond City hotel-casino in Poipet broke out at around 11:30 pm local (1630 GMT), Cambodian police said. A provisional police report seen by AFP said "about 10 people died and 30 people injured", adding that around 400 individuals were believed to be working at the venue.

Images obtained showed the building consumed by flames, with firefighters struggling to contain the intense blaze and rescuers attempting to pluck people from a burning ledge. In one clip, an unidentified man is seen sitting on a window ledge as smoke billows from the window behind him. In another, a group of people huddles on a ledge as flames near them. Local media reported that foreign nationals were inside the casino at the time of the fire.

A Thai foreign ministry source said they were coordinating closely with local authorities, with the injured transferred to hospitals in Thailand’s Sa Kaeo province. "The authorities have been trying to control the fire including by sending in firetrucks from the Thai side," they said. A volunteer with Thai rescue group the Ruamkatanyu Foundation said the blaze started on the first floor but spread quickly along the carpets, leaping up through the multi-storey building.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP