By C. Khor
GEORGE TOWN, May 31: Police have confirmed that a 56-year-old foreign worker found dead following a fire at the former Odeon Cinema building on Penang Road was not an employee of the entertainment outlet that previously occupied the premises.
Northeast District Deputy Police Chief Supt. Lee Swee Sake said the building was undergoing renovation work to be converted into a restaurant when the fire broke out on Saturday night.
“This death has been classified as a sudden death case, and a Sudden Death Report has been opened to facilitate investigations into the case,” he said.
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, meanwhile, has extended his deepest condolences to the family of the man who died in the fire.
Police said they received information regarding the fire at about 8.50 pm.
After it was brought under control by the Penang Fire and Rescue Department, the body was found near the front entrance at approximately 10.23 pm.
“Members of the public are advised not to make any speculation regarding this fire as it may affect police investigations into the cause of the victim’s death and the Fire and Rescue Department’s investigation into the cause of the fire,” he said.
Firefighters arrived to find the blaze already raging at the two-storey premises, formerly the Midnight Black nightclub, with a floor area of about 1,393.54 sq m.
By 10.45 pm, an estimated 50 per cent of the building had been destroyed. Thick smoke was visible from more than 5km away, causing severe traffic congestion in parts of George Town.
The former Odeon Cinema, originally known as Theatre Royal, later King’s Theatre, was a prominent fixture in Penang’s entertainment scene for more than a century before ceasing operations in 2014.
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