Vietnam: 14 killed, 6 injured after massive fire breaks out at an apartment in Hanoi

By 6.20am, at least 14 people had died and six were injured, VNA cited local officials as saying. It was not clear how many people were in the apartment at the time the fire broke out. The flames were extinguished after an hour.

A fire that ripped through a small apartment block in central Hanoi early Friday has killed at least 14 people and injured three others, state media said.  "At approximately 12:30 am (1730 GMT Thursday), the fire started. There were many explosions and a large fire, according to Vietnam News Agency. At least 14 people died and three injured by 6:20 am, according to local officials quoted by VNA.

The first floor was reportedly used for the selling and fixing of electric bicycles.

It took an hour to extinguish the fire, and state media reported 24 residents were in the building, seven in the owner’s family and 17 tenants. The injured are stable and being treated at Hanoi Transport Hospital. The building was in a narrow alley in central Hanoi with several rooms available for rent.

Firefighters managed to rescue seven people from the fire at a five-story building in a small alley in Vietnam's capital city, the Ministry of Public Security said in a statement. The ministry said it is investigating the cause of the fire, whose victims are yet to be identified.

Notably, a massive fire in an apartment block in Hanoi killed at least 56 people and injured dozens in September last year. Authorities in fast-growing Hanoi say many newly-built apartments do not meet fire safety regulations, according to BBC. The city's population has quadrupled to 5.25 million in the past 20 years.