Twelve people were killed and 38 injured after a man started a fire at Japan's Kyoto Animation Co., a famous animation production studio, on Thursday morning.
The police are trying to ascertain if people are still trapped in the building, Kyodo News reports.
The suspect, a 41-year-old man, was also injured in the incident. The injured have been transported to the hospital.
Witnesses saw the suspect hurling some liquid at the building and setting fire to it.
A Kyoto city fire department spokesperson told AFP, "There are many injuries at the scene." Over 35 fire engines and other firefighting vehicles have been sent to the scene.
The spokesperson said that the fire department sent 35 fire engines and other firefighting vehicles to the site.
Witnesses said that they first heard explosions and then saw black smoke erupting from the building. The injured were carried out of the building moments later.
"A person with singed hair was lying down and there were bloody footprints," said a witness was quoted as saying by Kyodo News.
Another witness said, "I heard a bang and the black smoke and the burning smell were awful."
This incident comes just months after a man went on a stabbing spree in Tokyo, attacking 17 schoolgirls and killing one of them. An adult was also killed in the attack.
