Police rule Myanmar worker’s death in Penang entertainment outlet fire as sudden death

GEORGE TOWN, May 31 — Police have classified the death of a Myanmar man found in a fire at an entertainment premises on Jalan Penang last night as sudden death.

Northeast District deputy police chief Supt Lee Swee Sake advised the public against speculating on the incident as it could affect police investigations into the cause of death and the Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department’s (JBPM) probe into the cause of the fire.

He said police received information about the incident from members of the public at 8.50pm, before firefighters later found the body of the 56-year-old victim.

Lee said the premises were being renovated into a restaurant, and the victim is believed to have been a worker with the contractor carrying out the works, although investigations are still ongoing.

Meanwhile, Penang JBPM director Mohamad Shoki Hamzah said in a statement today that overhaul work was still ongoing following extensive roof and concrete wall collapses, which had restricted firefighters’ access to the centre of the building to carry out cooling works.

Mohamad Shoki said JBPM estimated that 70 per cent of the 1,393.54 square metres of the entertainment outlet, known as Midnight Black, operating in the former Odeon cinema building, was destroyed in the fire.

He said the victim, identified as Mohamad Boshi Sabi Ullah, in his 50s, was found with first-degree burns near the building’s exit after the fire was put out at about 11.15pm.

He said the victim’s body was sent to Penang Hospital for a post-mortem to determine the cause of death.

Mohamad Shoki said 38 firefighters from four stations, Lebuh Pantai, Jalan Perak, Bayan Baru and Paya Terubong Fire and Rescue Stations, were involved in the firefighting operation, supported by 16 members of the Volunteer Fire Brigade, while a fire command post was also activated at the scene to coordinate the operation.

Earlier, he said the fire department received an emergency call at 8.50pm and found the building already engulfed in flames upon arrival.

The building, which once housed the Odeon Cinema, considered as one of Penang’s most iconic cinemas, was originally known as the Theatre Royal before being renamed King’s Theatre and later the Odeon Cinema. It has been part of the state’s entertainment landscape since the early 20th century.

In 1940, the cinema underwent major modernisation before reopening as the Odeon Cinema, featuring advanced projection, sound and air-conditioning systems for its time. It ceased operations on July 31, 2014. — Bernama