TAIPEI - A hospital fire, which broke out on Thursday morning in Pingtung county in southern Taiwan, has claimed eight lives as of 1 pm, according to local media reports.

The Pingtung county government said that the eight individuals -- six men and two women -- showed no signs of life after being rescued from the fire site and were declared dead despite emergency resuscitation efforts.

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The local fire department received a report at 7:41 am of thick smoke emanating from a building at Antai Tian-sheng Memorial Hospital.

Speaking to the media earlier, Su Ching-chyuan, the hospital's honorary dean, said that the fire was caused by the combustion of an air compressor in a hospital building's machine room, adding that most of the victims were elderly hospitalized patients.

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Rescue personnel on-site told local media that the fire is now under control.