The aftermath of the fire that killed 14 people in a house in Trung Kính Street, Cầu Giấy District, Hà Nội on May 24. — VNA/VNS Photo Phạm Kiên

HÀ NỘI — Authorities have been told to spare no effort and move swiftly to charge anyone responsible for the fatal fire which killed 14 in Hà Nội a week ago.

The permanent deputy secretary of the Hà Nội’s Party Committee Nguyễn Thị Tuyến has ordered authorities to discover who caused the fire and prosecute, saying a quick trial will serve as a deterrent for similar violations in the future.

In Official Dispatch No 1150-CV/TU, she said the fatal fire was not only serious and took people's lives and property, but it threatened security and order.

Fire fighters managed to bring the blaze, on May 24, down a narrow alleyway in Trung Kính Street in Cầu Giấy District, under control in just ten minutes, but the dead were trapped inside.

Inspections of multi occupancy buildings, rentals, boarding houses and high rises are being ramped up across the capital, while landlords and investors have been ordered to make sure that their buildings are safe.

The Standing Committee of the city's Party Committee ordered the the Inspection Committee to check and revise fire precaution rules and fire fighting regulations in the district and report to the Party Committee before June 30.

All relevant agencies were ordered to inspect every house in the capital, including boarding houses, rental houses and houses for both business and rental purposes.

At the same time, the committee assigned all districts and towns to coordinate with the city's Police Department in re-evaluating conditions and standards of fire fighting and prevention, especially in high-rise apartment buildings, densely populated areas, mini apartments and houses for rent in the city.

Investors, managers and owners of any buildings have been ordered to quickly fix any safety issues to prevent any fires like this happening again.

The city’s Police Department has been told to tell people to stop leaving EVs on charge without keeping watch and to never leave them on charge overnight, or when there is no adult at home.

The Party Committee of Cầu Giấy District has been asked to quickly make available financial support to the fire victims and their families. They will be offered money from a fund which must be made public and transparent and be allocated by May 31, the dispatch said.

In another development, on Thursday morning, five people were rescued from a fire at a rental house in the suburbs of Hà Nội.

The Hà Đông District's Police Office said the fire broke out around 5:30am on Thursday on the ground floor of a residential house with rental rooms in Phú Lương Ward.

The district police sent two fire engines and several firefighters to the scene and the blaze was extinguished in a few minutes and people were led to safety.

There were no casualties from the fire, the cause of which is now being investigated by police.— VNS