An allegedly intoxicated man has set a house on fire in the ‘backpacker street’ of Bui Vien in downtown Ho Chi Minh City on Sunday evening.

Chaos erupted on Bui Vien in District 1 at around 7:30 pm, when a house in one of the street’s back-alleys caught fire, accompanied by minor explosions.

Bui Vien is a popular area for expats and backpackers because of its vibrant nightlife and diversity of entertainment.

Locals and tourists at the scene are reported to have seen a man, who they believed to have been using drugs, fleeing from the house minutes before the fire broke out.

The man had been heard making threats about burning the house down before the blaze began.

Efforts made by witnesses to put the fire out using available extinguishers were to no avail, as the fire quickly consumed the entire house.

Firefighters who arrived at the scene minutes later were able to extinguish the flames quickly.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation by local authorities.

The remains of the house where the fire occurred. Photo: Tuoi Tre

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