An overnight fire tore through a building in the southern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung on Thursday, killing 46 people and injuring dozens of others, officials said.

The blaze broke out in the 13-storey, mixed-use building in the small hours of Thursday morning, according to officials, raging through multiple floors before firefighters finally got it under control.

“The fire caused 41 injuries and 46 deaths,” Kaohsiung’s fire department said in a statement to reporters.

Pictures published by Taiwan’s official Central News Agency showed smoke billowing out of the building’s windows as firefighters desperately tried to douse the flames using extendable hoses.

Most of the deaths were on floors seven to eleven which housed residential apartments, fire officials said. The first five floors were for commercial use but were unoccupied. (AFP)

•PHOTO: This picture taken and released by Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA) on October 14, 2021 shows rescue operations after an overnight fire tore through a building (pictured R) in the southern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung, killing at least 46 people and injuring dozens of others. STR / CNA / AFP