Fire at indoor South Korean shooting range kills 10 people, injures 6

By KWANG-TAE KIM , Associated Press

Last update: November 14, 2009 - 4:58 AM

SEOUL, South Korea - A fire tore though an indoor shooting range in southern South Korea on Saturday, killing 10 people, including at least two Japanese, and injuring six others, police said.

Some people were on fire as they ran out of the building, the Yonhap news agency quoted a witness as saying.

Nine Japanese tourists were inside the facility in the southern port city of Busan when the fire broke out on the second floor of a five-story building, police official Han Jong-seok said.

An official at the National Emergency Management Agency said authorities were struggling to identify the dead due to their burns.

Han said at least two Japanese were confirmed to have been killed.

A Japanese man was in life-threatening condition with severe burns at Dong-a University Medical Center in Busan, said Kim Won-ha, an emergency room nurse.

Four people — two Japanese and two South Koreans — were being treated for burns over 50 percent to 90 percent of their bodies at Hana hospital in Busan, which specializes in burn treatment, the hospital said.

The Japanese Embassy in Seoul said officials had yet to confirm the exact number of Japanese victims.

The emergency official, who spoke on condition of anonymity citing policy, said the fire raged for about 40 minutes before being put out. Police and fire officials were trying to determine its cause.

Last year, a fire and accompanying explosions ripped through a cold storage warehouse in a city south of Seoul, killing 40 people.

Associated Press writer Kelly Olsen contributed to this report.

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