F

ire engulfed parts of a warehouse belonging to the Bounty cruise ship company at Benoa Port in Denpasar on Friday morning.

The fire damaged two storage rooms that held two huge tanks of water and diesel, but no casualties were reported.

Benoa Marine Police chief Adj. Comr. Gusti Ayu Putu Suwinaci said the fire was extinguished before it spread to a larger room nearby and a ship under construction. The fire was put out with the help of neighboring company PT Jaya Kota and port operator PT Pelabuhan Indonesia (Pelindo). Ayu said four fire engines came late to the scene to find that the fire had already been tamed. Firefighters were helped by a machine that sucked up seawater from Jaya Kota into a tank that would normally have been used to water ornamental plants at the port.

"We do not know the source of the fire yet, as the investigation is still underway. When I arrived, the fire erupted from the roof of the middle room where the water tank was kept," she said.

The storage tank of diesel, which would have spread the fire, was still intact and its storage room only had major damage to its roof. The middle room that kept some gasoline and a water tank was destroyed, while the larger room that kept aluminum materials only had minor damage on its roof.

Bounty owner, I Gde Wiratha, who is also the chairman of the Bali branch of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said he could not yet estimate the total loss.

"I wonder what caused the fire; maybe an electricity surge or a lit cigarette? But that zone is a nonsmoking area," he said. He arrived at the scene in the afternoon after the blaze was put out.

He said the blaze taught him to immediately provide a special hydrant that was suitable for such a situation.

"It's a wake-up call for us, for not having a special hydrant," he said, adding that a currently available hydrant was not supported by an adequate water supply.

His wife, Yeni Wiratha, said she was grateful for the quick response that prevented the fire spreading to other buildings.