Sutisna, 60, watched his brothers and sons pick up what was left of their house, only to find out that only ashes and rubble remained. Their house was detroyed by the fire that tore through Pasar Baru, Central Jakarta, on Sunday evening,
"We were given time today to clean up and collect our possessions because tomorrow the administration will clean them up," Sutisna said, quoting a district official.
The fire leveled Sutisna's two-story house that measured 6 by 8 meters where he lived with his wife, four children and five other relatives.
"I've been living here for 50 years," he said.
"They are all staying in the temporary shelter. I still don't know how my children will get to school tomorrow, they don't have any clothes to change into."
Another resident, Adang, 59, leaned against a wall gazing at the space that used to be his living room.
"My family are staying with relatives in Depok. We don't know what we will do next," he said.
Besides Sutisna and Adang, 166 families lost their homes after the massive fire swamped densely populated area of neighborhood unit 9 and 10 Sunday.
Indonesian Red Cross recorded that as of Tuesday, 580 residents, including 45 toddlers of 166 families lost their homes and were forced to stay at temporary shelters.
Satiman, neighborhood unit 9 head, said he suspected the fire was caused by sparks from fireworks that collided with the roof of a house.
Chinese New Year was being celebrated that evening.
On Tuesday, many residents were still busy salvaging their belongings.
Sometimes shouts of anger were heard from the residents as scavengers attempted to loot deserted homes or unattended belongings.
At the temporary shelter, Sumiyati said she had to share a room with around 110 fire victims.
"We have enough breakfast, lunch and dinner thanks to donations. But I don't know when will we have a new home," she said.
A Central Jakarta health officer, Isa Anwarij, said his office was priori tizing the victim's basic needs.
"Hopefully, they *the victims* can immediately return to good mental and physical health," he said.
PMI corporate communications, Aan Ratmana, said PMI had set up public kitchens to provide lunch for the victims.
Breakfast and dinner are provided by by Central Jakarta municipal administration.
"Other areas might need our help, but supports and donations from the public will be facilitated by the support posts formed by the residents," he said.
On Tuesday while the residents of Pasar Baru were busily cleaning up their neighborhood, another fire gutted a shop close to the Mangga Dua Square shopping center, which is located around two kilometers from Pasar Baru.
The fire broke out at 11:25 a.m.
"We managed to put the fire out in one hour," said Sahlan from the North Jakarta fire department.
Police said they were still investigating the cause of the fires.
"We are awaiting results from the National Police laboratory and forensics division, said a police detective in charge of the fire investigation, Comr. Suwondo Nainggolan.
"We cannot confirm the cause of the Pasar Baru fire, but the Mangga Dua fire was definitely due to a short circuit." (iwp)
