"Some 450 homes caught fire and 400 families or 3,500 people were forced to take refuge," Chief of the North Jakarta Fire Fight and Rescue Office Satriadi Gunawan said in Jakarta on Saturday.
The fire broke out at around 02.15 p.m. local time on Saturday, Satriadi quoted a witness as saying.
"The witness saw the fire emerging from one of the houses in RT (neighborhood association) 12 in Ancol village-level administration and he, along with other residents, tried to put out the blaze," he said.
The fire later spread to two other neighborhood associations, namely RT 11 and RT 13. The fact that the semi-permanent homes were built so close together made it difficult for firefighters to put out the blaze. A total of 20 fire trucks comprising 12 from North Jakarta, five from Central Jakarta, and three from West Jakarta were deployed to extinguish the fire.
By Saturday night, the fire was successfully put out. However, the cause of the fire is still unknown.
EDITED BY INE
Translator: Fianda Sjofjan R, Suharto
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
