More than 100 tourists were evacuated this morning (Jan 5) after a fire ripped through an apartment block in a Thai tourist resort.<br /><br />Some people were stranded on balconies screaming for help after flames engulfed rooms on the seventh floor of the building in Jomtien, eastern Thailand, at around 5 am local time.<br /><br />Fire crews arrived and battled the inferno while helping panicked residents to safety. Some were rushed to hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation at the nearby Pattaya hospital.<br /><br />Police and fire officers are now investigating what caused the blaze in one of the bedrooms of the Laguna Beach condominium block.<br /><br />Officials said that many people were sleeping at the time of the fire and others ignored the fire alarm after believing it was a drill or mistake.
