PATTAYA, Thailand – A drunken Dutch tourist sparked a midnight scare at a Pattaya condominium after falling asleep while frying chicken and leaving the stove on, filling several floors with smoke and forcing residents to evacuate. The incident occurred at approximately 4.30am on October 31 at Laguna Beach Resort 3 in Nongprue, Banglamung district, Chonburi.
Pattaya police received reports of heavy smoke inside the building and coordinated an emergency response involving Sawang Boriboon Pattaya rescue workers and the city’s disaster prevention and mitigation unit. Three fire engines were dispatched to the scene.
On arrival, officials found smoke spreading between the third and fifth floors. Thai residents and foreign tourists rushed out of their rooms and gathered outside as police, rescue workers and firefighters knocked on doors to wake sleeping occupants and ensure everyone evacuated safely.
After approximately 30 minutes of searching for the source, officials traced the smoke to room 304 on the third floor. A strong burning smell and thick smoke were coming from inside.
Condominium staff unlocked the door, where firefighters discovered a frying pan containing badly burnt chicken left on the stove. Inside, they found the 30-year-old Dutch occupant sleeping soundly on his bed.
Repeated attempts to wake him initially failed, forcing officials to shake him until he finally woke up, appearing confused by the large number of emergency personnel inside his room.
The man reportedly admitted that he had been drinking alcohol before putting chicken in the frying pan. He then accidentally fell asleep without switching off the stove, allowing the food to burn and fill the room with smoke.
Firefighter Siriwat Prawit said his team had found the burnt frying pan on the stove and the foreign occupant asleep inside. He confirmed that the man had to be physically shaken awake after failing to respond to repeated calls. No injuries or fatalities were reported, but the incident caused considerable alarm among residents who had been forced to leave their rooms in the early morning.
