President Tsai Ing-wen said she had come to the city of Kaohsiung âmainly to visit the wounded and offer my condolences to the family membersâ of the deceased.
âThe fire accident that happened in the Cheng Chong Cheng building resulted in many injuries and deaths. Everyone is feeling deeply sad and torn with separation,â she said.
Tsai thanked rescuers, the police force and medical workers for their work. She added that the central government would work closely with county and city officials to clean up older and abandoned buildings, and prevent similar incidents from happening.
The Taiwanese leader also visited hospitals where dozens of people who were injured in the blaze were receiving medical treatment.
The decades-old apartment building is one of many in the Yancheng district, an older part of Kaohsiung, a city of some 2.8 million people in southwestern Taiwan.
Major newspaper United Daily News said that investigators were focusing on a first-floor tea shop where the fire had started, and police were looking into a resident who reportedly fought with his girlfriend earlier on Wednesday. They had not ruled out arson, according to the paper.
Fire extinguishers were installed last month, but only three per floor because the residents could not afford to pay more, it said.