Electricity in South Pattaya was knocked out temporarily by burning electrical and communications wires.
Firefighters needed only 10 minutes to put out the June 22 fire spread across five utility poles on Thepprasit Road near Thepprasit Soi 7. The damage, however, knocked out power, telephone, internet and cable-television service in the area until utility companies could restore service.
Residents complained that the fire was inevitable, as utility poles in the area are covered in huge jumbles of live and dead wires, many of which sag dangerously close to the ground.