Jakarta (ANTARA News) - State-owned oil company Pertamina confirmed that fire is again burning its tank 31 T-7 in Cilacap, Central Java, which had actually stopped earlier, a spokesman said here Tuesday.

M. Harun said that the isolation of the flames that burnt the tank have started again.

"The flames had spread starting at 12 pm," Harun said.

Earlier Pertamina said the fire on tank 31 T-7 containing naphtha, had already been stopped at 10.35 am on Tuesday.

However, he added, strong winds caused the hot liquid left in the tank to break the foam that had already covered it.

According to him, the oil company was still trying to spray foam and water on the burning tank and to cool it.

The fire on tank 31 T-7 was the third which stopped after tanks 31 T-2 and 31 T-3 on Sunday (April 3).

On Saturday (April 2)at 4.55 am, the fire started to burn tank 31 T-2 and had spread to tanks 31 T-3 and 31 T-7 in Pertamina`s refinery in Cilacap.

Tank 31 T-2 was full of high octane motor-gasoline component (HMOC), while T-3 and T-7 tanks contained naphtha.

Harun added, the protection and cooling process of tank 31 T-104, which was located close to 31 T-7, continued to lower the tank`s temperature to less than 50 Celsius.

Pertamina was still investigating the causes of the fire. However the state-owned oil company made sure that the fuel supply was still enough.(*)

Editor: Aditia Maruli Radja
Copyright © ANTARA 2011