JAKARTA, Indonesia – At least 16 individuals have been killed and dozens injured in Indonesia’s capital Friday, after an enormous blaze broke out at a state-run gas storage depot earlier than firefighters introduced it beneath management, officers mentioned.
The raging inferno burned a number of homes, prompted individuals to flee in panic and compelled the evacuation of residential areas close by the depot run by state power agency Pertamina in north Jakarta.
The Jakarta hearth and rescue division mentioned 16 individuals together with two kids have been killed within the hearth, which injured a minimum of 50 extra.
Many of these killed and injured suffered extreme burns after the hearth broke out, division chief Satriadi Gunawan informed AFP.
The explanation for the hearth, which began after 8 pm native time (1300 GMT), was not clear.
The blaze was put out a number of hours after it began, military chief of employees Dudung Abdurachman informed reporters.
“The fire is already extinguished,” he mentioned.
Gunawan mentioned firefighters have been engaged on “cooling” the hearth space after bringing it beneath management.
The navy chief Abdurachman and Pertamina mentioned they have been investigating the trigger.
“Pertamina is focused on handling the fire and evacuating workers and residents nearby to a safer location,” the corporate mentioned in an announcement.
The oil and gasoline agency’s chief govt Nicke Widyawati mentioned it will “conduct a full internal evaluation… to prevent the reoccurrence of a similar event.”
She mentioned the nation’s gas provide had not been disrupted, remaining safe by way of backup provides from the closest out there terminals.
Second blaze in years
Heru mentioned the Indonesian authorities would contribute to the remedy of the injured.
Erick Thohir, the nation’s minister of state-owned enterprises, expressed his condolences for these killed and injured.
“We are all saddened by his tragedy,” he mentioned in an announcement, calling on Pertamina to totally examine the incident.
Footage broadcast on TV confirmed individuals screaming and fleeing by way of slender roads with a raging inferno within the sky behind them.
Firefighters have been additionally proven speeding to the scene to manage the blaze as ambulance employees transported physique baggage to hospitals.
Gunawan mentioned firefighters initially obtained studies a pipe had burst on the depot and officers rapidly labored to include the blaze from reaching close by residential areas.
Jakarta’s primary hearth station mentioned it had deployed 51 items and greater than 250 firefighters to the Plumpang depot in north Jakarta.
A hearth broke out on the similar depot in 2009 and fires hit 40 homes close to the depot in 2014 however no casualties have been reported in both case.
In 2021 an enormous blaze broke out on the Balongan refinery in West Java, additionally owned by state oil firm Pertamina and one among Indonesia’s greatest oil refineries.
The hearth raged for 2 days and prompted hundreds to be evacuated after an enormous explosion. — Agence France-Presse
Source: www.gmanetwork.com
