Meteorite may cause blast in Duren Sawit

East Jakarta police are suspicious that an explosion which damaged a house in Duren Sawit district on Thursday was a result of an object from outer space.

“Our preliminary examination concludes that an object from outer space has struck the house,” East Jakarta police chief Sr. Comr. Hasanuddin was quoted by kompas.com Friday.

He said a gas canister inside the house of Sudarmojo was left unharmed and police officers did not find traces of gun powder or explosive materials that might cause the blast.

The police collected ashes and debris from the suspected space object for examination at the forensic laboratory. “Tomorrow we will find out what caused the explosion,” Hasanuddin said.

A neighbor, Pipit, said she spotted a light which moved very fast toward Sudarmojo’s house, which was empty. Pipit added that an explosion followed and caused a tremor.

Pipit was taken to the police office for questioning in connection with the blast.