YALA: An elderly monk was narrowly rescued from his living quarter at Wat Dithamongkol, a Buddhist temple in tambon Tha Sap of Muang district, where a fire broke out early on Sunday, police said.
Pol Lt Chanchai Jittipatarakul, a duty officer at Muang police station, said that at about 2.40am he received a phone call from Phrakhru Prachachote Thammanoon, the temple's abbot, notifying him of the fire.
Fire engines of the Tambon Tha Sap and Muang Yala municipalities were subsequently dispatched to the scene. The fire was put out in about 30 minutes after completely burning down the wooden house, which was about 30 years old, and valuable items which were kept in it.
Phra Net Therathammo, an 80-year-old monk, was narrowly brought to safety by monks and villagers who broke into the house shortly after the fire started after hearing him calling for help.
The cause of the fire was being investigated. It was initially believed an electrical short circuit was the cause of the fire.
