TOKYO, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Fifteen people were killed and 10 others were injured, including four seriously, in a fire which broke out at a video house early Wednesday in Osaka, Japan.

All of the dead, found in individual rooms of the video house, were male customers, according to firefighters.

The blaze broke out in the video house on the first floor of the seven-story building in Naniwa Ward in Osaka city, rescuers said, adding that they received an emergency call at around 03:00 a.m. local time.

Initial investigation showed the cause of death seemed to be carbon monoxide poisoning and inhalation burns, they said.

The fire was put out in about an hour and a half after burning some 30 square meters of the floor.

The video house had 32 small private rooms displaying DVDs and customers can stay overnight at a cheap cost.

Local police are questioning one of the surviving customers who was smoking in his room, where the fire was believed to have started.

The layout of the video house was so complicated that first-time customers would get confused to find out the emergency exit, according to Japanese media.

Cheap overnight places mushroomed in major Japanese cities to cater dwellers who work or party late until the metro lines are closed, as taxi rides are extremely expensive in Japan.
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