Chiang Mai fire claims lives of family of five

A family of five, including twin girls and a bed-ridden elderly woman, died from smoke inhalation when their two-storey house, in Muang district of Chiang Mai province, caught fire early this morning.

District police said that firemen successfully pulled the five victims, including a couple, from the house as they battled the fire. All the victims were administered with CPR at the scene, before being rushed to Maharaj Nakhon Hospital.

All the five family members were eventually pronounced dead at the hospital.

It took the firemen about an hour to extinguish the fire, but the house was damaged beyond repair.

Police initially think that the fire was caused by a short circuit, but an investigation will determine the exact cause of the fatal fire.