The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Fires swept through densely populated areas in Central and East Jakarta on Friday, destroying hundreds of homes and displacing thousands.
Nearly 700 shacks in a slum area in Pedongkelan, East Jakarta, were destroyed Friday morning, leaving more than 2,000 people homeless.
It is suspected the blaze, which began at about 7:30 a.m., was caused by an electrical short circuit in one of the huts, a firefighter said.
More than 20 fire trucks were dispatched to the scene, and with the help of residents they were able to put out the blaze at about 9:30 a.m.
No casualties were reported.
Residents scrambled to save what they could from the flames, piling their possessions in the nearby Pulogadung-Harmoni busway lane, causing a traffic jam.
TransJakarta busway public service manager, Rene Nunumete, said buses were forced to turn around because of the incident.
""The buses couldn't get through because the residents put their possessions in the lane. Besides, there were lots of bystanders watching the fire, backing up traffic,"" he said.
In the afternoon, at least 12 houses were damaged or destroyed by a fire in a densely populated neighborhood behind a goat market in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta.
Although there were no casualties, affected residents lost most of their belongings, including money and important documents.
One resident, Cahya, 50, told detik.com news portal: ""I lost all of my money and clothes ... There's nothing left.""
Cahya said her son's sewing machine was also lost in the fire, so he would be unable to earn money as a tailor.
There are still no details on how the fire, which began about 2:30 p.m., started.
It took firefighters almost two hours to put out the blaze.
Central Jakarta Fire Department chief Susilo Budhi said his men had a difficult time extinguishing the fire.
""The nearest water source was too far. We had to use the water from the river in front of Pasar Tanah Abang,"" he said.
The department mobilized 27 trucks to put out the fire.
In the past two months, there have been at least four major fires in the city, most in slums or densely populated areas.
Most of the fires were caused by electrical short circuits or exploding kerosene stoves. (08)
