A casino employee was killed in an early morning blaze on Wednesday, said provincial fire officials in Kampot province.
Kampong Trach district deputy police chief Nhean Sary said the victim, 29-year-old Chhng Maley, worked as a card dealer at Hatien Vegas Entertainment Resort near the Prek Chak border checkpoint next to Vietnam in Kampong Trach district.
“Witnesses said that staff began fleeing the building without consideration for people who may have been inside and the victim died inside one of the rooms,” Sary said.
He said Maley’s body was handed over to his family in Takeo province’s Lumchang commune in Samrong district.
By the time firefighters arrived on the scene, staff from the casino had used 68 fire extinguishers to successfully control the fire and prevent it from spreading to other rooms.
Sary, who is in charge of the district police’s Department of Fire Prevention, Extinguishing and Rescue, said officials deployed two fire engines to extinguish the flames.
“Our on-site investigation concluded that the fire was caused by an electrical fault,” Sary said.
Taing Dara, a relative of the victim, told The Post the casino had donated $1,000 towards Maley’s funeral expenses.
“Of course I was not there, but I believe that my cousin was awake when the fire broke out and could not escape while others managed to flee successfully. I want his death to be further investigated,” Dara said.
Provincial police chief Mao Chanmathurith said police had conducted an autopsy at the scene and checked the surveillance footage, but did not find anything amiss.
“The victim staggered into his room at 3am as he was drunk. The fire broke out at 4:30am and all staff fled the premises but him.
“After inspecting the site, specialists believe the victim may have been asleep and died from suffocation due to the smoke,” he said.
