Fire at Dotonbori Buildings: Thoroughly Examine Firefighting Activities and Buildings

Editorial

15:41 JST, August 22, 2025

Why did a fire result in firefighters losing their lives? It is necessary to closely examine the process of firefighting activities. The structure and equipment of the buildings must also be investigated urgently.

A total of 100 square meters at two neighboring multi-tenant buildings — one a seven-story building and the other a six-story one — was burned in Dotonbori, one of the busiest commercial areas in Osaka City. Two firefighters from the Osaka Municipal Fire Department died while fighting the fire.

The two firefighters, equipped with air tanks, entered the first floor of the seven-story building with another firefighter. While they were tackling the blaze on the fifth floor, the ceiling collapsed and the two were stranded on the sixth floor. Both died of asphyxiation. They are believed to have been killed just over 10 minutes after arriving at the scene. The other firefighter managed to escape on his own.

The number of duty-related deaths of firefighters over the 10 years through 2023 has reached 11. While it is a job that poses constant danger, the loss of two firefighters at once is a profound shock as they work hard day and night to protect the lives and livelihoods of residents.

The buildings were engulfed in an intense blaze and black smoke. The safety management manual of the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency stipulates that when entering a building filled with smoke, the on-site commander must inform firefighters of such things as the internal structure and fire conditions in advance, and firefighters must always ensure an escape route.

In a building fire in Shizuoka City in 2022, in which a firefighter was killed, it was pointed out that firefighters were not connected by safety ropes inside the building and that information sharing about the source of the fire was insufficient.

The Osaka city government has established an accident investigation committee. Was the entry into the building appropriate? What kinds of firefighting activities were conducted at the scene? Why did two firefighters with air tanks on their backs suffocate just over 10 minutes after they arrived at the scene? These issues must be thoroughly reviewed and the lessons utilized to prevent a similar accident from happening.

Whether there were any problems with the buildings’ structure and equipment will also be a key point of investigation. The municipal fire department explained that, during an on-site inspection of the buildings in 2023, six violations of laws and ordinances were identified, including insufficient fire alarms and failure to conduct evacuation drills, but the owner of the buildings reported that only some of these issues had been improved.

The fire is believed to have originated near the exterior air conditioning unit on a lower floor of one of the buildings. Multi-tenant buildings, where a large number of unspecified people come and go, are required to take strict fire prevention measures. Due to their structure, smoke tends to spread vertically and fill the buildings easily.

In the 2001 fire at a multi-tenant building in Tokyo’s Kabukicho district that claimed 44 lives, violations of laws and ordinances such as items being placed on staircases were confirmed. Although regulations to ensure safety were strengthened afterward, many multi-tenant buildings are still in violation of laws and ordinances.

It is hoped that building managers will check once again whether fire safety measures are properly taken. Fire authorities also need to promptly identify whether any violations of laws and ordinances, which were discovered during on-site inspections, have been left unaddressed.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Aug. 22, 2025)