"Some 20 bodies of shophouse fire victims have been evacuated by officers who inspected the area," Central Jakarta Police Chief Senior Commissioner Susatyo Purnomo Condro stated here on Tuesday.
The retrieved bodies were transported to Kramat Jati Police Hospital in East Jakarta for identification purposes, he said, adding that on-site officers continue sweeping the area for more victims.
He noted that most of the 20 victims, comprising 15 females and five males, were staff members at the burned shophouses.
According to the police chief, rescue officers so far were only able to access the fifth floor of the 7-storey shophouse. "They have begun to enter the fifth and sixth floors to evacuate more victims," he noted.
The fire in the shophouse, operating as the "Terra Drone" store, which sells commercial UAV and drone camera products, reportedly started at around 12:43 p.m. local time in the shop's battery storage on the ground floor.
Condro said that the staff members had attempted to extinguish the fire themselves; however, they failed, and the fire spread to the upper floors.
The fire occurred during the midday rest, and most workers, who were resting on the second to the sixth floor of the shophouse, became trapped by the fire on the ground floor.
"The fire spreads, and the smoke went up to the sixth floor," he remarked.
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Translator: Khaerul Izan, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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