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When finally someone called back, it was a rescue worker who had
found their bodies, slumped against each other in their hotel
room on the 17th floor, where they died from smoke inhalation.
Her parents were among at least 27 people who died in the blaze
at Grand Diamond City Casino and Hotel, which also injured more
than 100 people. At least 20 remain missing.
The cause of the fire, which broke out around midnight on
Wednesday, is still unknown but officials suspect it may have
been due to an electrical short circuit.
"The rescuers said my parents were not burned, but they choked
from inhaling smoke. So, if help had come earlier they might
have survived," Nunthida, 36, said at a hospital on the Thai
side of the border where many of the dead and injured were
taken.
One survivor recounted seeing a light fixture throw off sparks
that then caused flames to reach the ceiling, according to Thai
broadcaster Channel 7.
"Then it started getting chaotic. After the fire hit the
ceiling, I don't think it was ok. It had gone on for half an
hour and the fire trucks hadn't arrived.
"Just after five minutes, there was smoke everywhere," said
Piyapol Sukkaew, a patron who was on the casino floor at the
time.
Like most of the victims, Nunthida's parents, Puttika and Udon,
were Thai nationals. Both were retired and liked to travel to
nearby places for vacations, she said.
Casinos in Poipet and other Cambodian towns are popular with
short-term visitors from Asian countries that ban gambling, like
Thailand.
(Additional reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng in Bangkok; Writing
by Kanupriya Kapoor; Editing by Martin Petty)
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