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Fire guts dense slum area in Muara Baru
A fire razed more than 450 semi-permanent dwellings, equivalent to one neighborhood unit, in the Empang Rawa Indah area of Kapuk Muara, North Jakarta, on Tuesday morning
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fire razed more than 450 semi-permanent dwellings, equivalent to one neighborhood unit, in the Empang Rawa Indah area of Kapuk Muara, North Jakarta, on Tuesday morning.
The fire started at around 9 a.m. and within one hour had gutted most of the huts on a 5-hectare site inhabited by more than 1,000 people, eye witnesses said.
“Most of the buildings here are made out of plywood and bamboo,” neighborhood unit chief Udin said, adding that around 150 huts to the east of the site had escaped the blaze because of strong winds that directed the fire to the west.
One police officer on duty during the fire, S. Siregar, told the The Jakarta Post the police were still investigating the cause of the fire and refused to speculate.
However, residents suspected an electrical glitch or stove explosion caused the fire.
The fire caused severe traffic jams at Pluit Toll Road Interchange.
The City Police’s Traffic Management Center (TMC) reported on its website that the traffic conditions at the toll road were slightly disrupted as some motorists slowed down their vehicles while witnessing smoke coming from the fire at around 9 a.m.
The situation returned to normal about three hours later as fire fighters were able to put out the blaze.
North Jakarta and West Jakarta Fire Departments deployed 27 fire engines to the scene. The fire trucks arrived at 9:30 a.m. and had extinguished the fire an hour later, city fire department officer Solihanto told the Post.
Solihanto’s team had difficulties in finding water in the area.
“We tried to extinguish the fire using a relay,” he said.
Some local residents said fire fighters struggled to get water to battle the flames.
“The water hose from one fire engine stopped spraying water,” said a resident, Sadana, 50.
The residents worked together to fight the flames using buckets to fetch water from a fishpond nearby.
Although there were no deaths or injuries, the fire caused panic among residents, many of who returned home from work to help their families salvage belongings including televisions, mattresses, cupboards and water dispensers.
One motorcycle taxi driver, Marjam, 38, sped home to rescue Rp 2 million (US$222) he had been saving since January to finance his son’s surgery.
“But I was too late. The fire had swept through my house when I arrived,” he said.
Residents whose shacks were razed by the fire started setting up structures on the idle land next to the neighborhood. Evacuated belongings were piled up next to the tents.
Some were seen to have started rebuilding temporary shelters.
The Indonesian Red Cross, the Jakarta Social Services Agency and the local subdistrict office provided them with assistance in the form of food and clothing. (tsy)
