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At least three people are dead and 12 people are injured after a fire in a Honolulu high-rise apartment building.
More than 60 firefighters tackled the blaze, which broke out on Friday (local time) in the 36-storey Marco Polo apartments.
Images broadcast by bystanders on social media showed thick black smoke pouring from the building as orange flames raged on several floors.
Fire Chief Manuel Neves said the three dead were found on the 26th floor, where the fire began.
The building, near the tourist mecca of Waikiki, is not required to have fire sprinklers, which would have confined the blaze to the unit where it started, Mr Neves said.
The building was built in 197, before sprinklers were mandatory in high-rises. It has more than 500 units.
Firefighters said there were reports of people trapped in their units in the burning building and some residents were unaccounted for.
Karen Hastings was in her 31st floor apartment when she smelled smoke. She ran out to her balcony, looked down, and saw flames five floors below her.
"The fire just blew up and went flying right out the windows," the 71-year-old Ms Hastings said.
"And that was like a horror movie. Except it wasn't a horror movie, it was for real."
Kirk Caldwell, the Mayor of Honolulu, was at the scene and commended the Honolulu Fire Department for their heroism.
He tweeted saying the fire was "officially under control" about four hours after it started.
"We could see smoke billowing out already and the ground was scorched outside the stairwell," Patrick Williamson, who lives on the 32nd floor with his two sons, said.
They evacuated when they smelled smoke.
"I feel worried, concerned and a little angry," Mr Williamson said.
"For the fire to get this out of control is a little suspicious. Either the fire department was late in response or there was something going on in that unit.
"Either way one wonders what happened and I feel a little bit less secure living in the building."
Mr Caldwell said the city needs to look at passing a law requiring older buildings be retrofitted with sprinklers.
"The biggest argument is the affordability," Mr Caldwell said.
"Residents have to pay. It's pretty expensive. But if it saves a life and it's your life, it's worth the cost."
Troy Yasuda, who lives in a building across the street, was giving water to people who evacuated.
"They were choking from the smoke," he said, adding that people told him they evacuated through dark stairwells.
Police were yelling through megaphones for people still inside to come down, Mr Yasuda said. He watched as people were carried out.
"It's been an orderly evacuation," said security guard Leonard Rosa, who was answering phones from the front lobby of the 31-story building near Waikiki.
Fourth-floor resident Aaron Dengler and his wife were helping their elderly neighbour get to an aid station the American Red Cross set up at a nearby park.
"It doesn't help to just stand and watch," he said.
Reuters/AP
Topics: disasters-and-accidents, fires, united-states, pacific
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