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Minister blames plant inferno on Banten
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Fatal accident: Officers remove bodies of workers killed in a deadly blast in a fireworks factory in Kosambi, Tangerang, on Oct.26. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
M
anpower Minister Hanif Dhakiri said on Sunday that the Banten provincial administration should be held accountable for the poor monitoring that led to a deadly blast in a fireworks factory in Kosambi, Tangerang.
Hanif said the factory, operated by PT Panca Buana Cahaya Sukses, had failed to implement protective measures for its workers despite storing and producing flammable materials.
He said the monitoring duties for work safety were now in the hands of the Banten provincial administration and that it needed to ensure such measures were implemented correctly in factories.
The deadly explosion on Thursday killed 48 workers and severely injured 45 others trapped inside.
“Based on our inspection, the building was more like a warehouse than a factory if we consider its safety equipment facilities,” Hanif said after inspecting the debris of the factory compound.
“There was no emergency exit. As the factory produced and stored flammable materials, the safety procedures should have been of a higher standard,” he said, adding that he demanded the individuals responsible for the incident be severely punished, given the casualties the explosion caused.
Witnesses said the exit gate, which appeared to be the only way out of the factory compound, was locked during the disaster, hindering the evacuation. Survivors managed to escape from the fire only after local residents and firefighters tore down the wall.
