Broken Door May Have Trapped Victims in Tokyo Sauna Fire

Tokyo, Dec. 16 (Jiji Press)–Two people who were found dead after a fire at a sauna facility in the Akasaka district of Tokyo’s Minato Ward on Monday may have been trapped inside a sauna unit due to a broken door, investigative sources said Tuesday. The L-shaped handles of the sauna unit’s door were found on the floor inside and outside the unit, according to the sources. The two victims–Masaya Matsuda, a 36-year-old beauty salon owner, and his 37-year-old wife, Yoko, a nail technician–were found collapsed near the door inside the sauna unit. The Metropolitan Police Department is investigating whether the victims were unable to escape because the door was inoperable, as well as how the facility, called SaunaTiger, was managed. In the sauna unit the victims used, parts of the wooden bench, including the backrest and seat, were charred, and a burned towel was left on top of the bench, according to the sources. An emergency button connected to the facility’s office was installed inside the sauna unit, and the button showed signs of being pressed and damaged. It remains unclear whether the button functioned properly. On Monday, a fire alarm outside the sauna unit sounded at around noon, prompting an employee to make an emergency call. The victims had booked the private room with the sauna unit from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. On Tuesday, the MPD conducted an on-site investigation. It plans to perform autopsies as early as Wednesday to determine the exact cause of death, and will also look into whether there were any shortcomings in the safety measures of the sauna operator, Sauna & Co Inc. The company said on its website that it takes the incident seriously and deeply regrets the loss of precious lives, adding that it will work closely with relevant authorities to determine the cause and prevent a recurrence. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]