Officials said about a dozen patients on the ground floor of the hospital managed to escape the blaze
At least 20 patients and a nurse have been killed in a fire at a hospital in Janseong county, South Korea.
Six others are in critical condition after the fire at Hyosarang Hospital, about 300 km south of Seoul.
Most of those who died are thought to have been in their 70s and 80s, and confined to their beds.
Officials said most of the victims died after suffocating on poisonous fumes. The fire was put out within half an hour.
The incident comes at a time of mourning for South Korea after more than 300 people died in a ferry sinking last month.
South Korean President Park Geun-hye has formally apologised to the nation for the ferry disaster, promising to improve safety standards.
The Prime Minister at the time, Chung Hong-won, resigned over the government's handling of the disaster.
The hospital incident also comes a day after seven people were killed and 20 others injured in a fire at a bus terminal in Goyang city.
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