Ammon News - Police in Vietnam have arrested a man suspected of starting a blaze that killed 11 following an argument with staff in a cafe, authorities said on Thursday, while two of the seven pulled from the flames were admitted to hospital.

In a statement, police said the man had confessed to using gasoline to set Wednesday's fire on the ground floor of the three-storey cafe.

The suspect is in his early 50s, said the state-run Tien Phong newspaper, adding that one witness reported hearing an explosion.

"The fire blocked all the exits," another witness told the paper. "The smell of gasoline was strong."

It took about 40 minutes to rein in the fire, reported just after 11 p.m., police added, with two of the seven rescued admitted to hospital.

Reuters