NAHA -- The fire that engulfed Shuri Castle on Thursday is believed to have started inside the Seiden main hall, given two shutters at the entrance to the hall were found to have been locked, the Okinawa prefectural police and others said Friday.
Prefectural police and the Naha Fire Department conducted an on-the-spot investigation Friday to determine the cause and origin of the fire.
The blaze, which is believed to have started at about 2:40 a.m. Thursday, destroyed an area of about 4,800 square meters of the seven-building site, including the wooden three-story Seiden main hall, Hokuden north hall, Nanden south hall and Bandokoro, the place where people were traditionally received when arriving at the castle.
The fire was put out about 11 hours later, after most of the buildings were almost completely destroyed.
According to the Naha Police Station and other sources, the two shutters at the two entrances of the main hall facing the central square were all locked at the time of the fire.
When security guards unlocked the shutter on the north side of the main hall after a heat sensor at the hall went off, smoke was rising inside, the sources were quoted as saying.
Shuri Castle's central court was surrounded by the main, north and south halls.
According to a source close to the fire department, the fires could have spread to the north and south halls due to radiant heat from the burning of the main hall.
The radiant heat forced several firefighters in front of the main hall to withdraw, with some taken to hospital because of heatstroke. Wind from the northeast also is believed to have resulted in the spread of the fire.
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