Thousands evacuated around the facility in the capital Jakarta
Firefighters inspect the ruins of houses destroyed in a fire in Jakarta, Indonesia, Friday, March 3, 2023. A large fire broke out at a fuel storage depot in Indonesia’s capital on Friday, killing several people, injuring dozens of others and forcing the evacuation of thousands of nearby residents after spreading to their neighborhood, officials said.
(AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
PUBLISHED: March 3, 2023
By Achmad Ibrahim | Associated Press
JAKARTA, Indonesia — A large fire broke out at a fuel storage depot in Indonesia’s capital on Friday, killing at least 17 people, injuring dozens of others and forcing the evacuation of thousands of nearby residents after spreading to their neighborhood, officials said.
The fuel storage station, operated by state-run oil and gas company Pertamina, is near a densely populated area in the 0Tanah Merah neighborhood in North Jakarta. It supplies 25% of Indonesia’s fuel needs.
At least 260 firefighters and 52 fire engines were struggling to contain the blaze in the nearby neighborhood, fire officials said.
Video of the fire broadcast on television showed hundreds of people in the community running in panic while thick plumes of black smoke and orange flames filled the sky and firefighters battled the blaze.
A preliminary investigation showed the fire broke out when a pipeline ruptured during heavy rain, possibly from a lightning strike, said Eko Kristiawan, Pertamina’s area manager.
He said the fire would not disrupt the country’s fuel supply.
Satriadi Gunawan, who heads Jakarta’s fire and rescue department, said people living in the residential area were still being evacuated and were being taken to a nearby village hall and a mosque.
“The fire caused several explosions and quickly spread to residential houses,” Gunawan said.
He said at least 17 people were dead, including two children, and 50 had been hospitalized, some with severe burns.
Indonesia’s minister of State-Owned Enterprises, Erick Thohir, expressed his condolences to the victims and their families and ordered Pertamina to thoroughly investigate the fire and focus on quickly assisting the community.
“There must be an operational evaluation in the future. I’ll continue to monitor this case,” Thohir said in a video statement.
PUBLISHED: March 3, 2023
By Achmad Ibrahim | Associated Press
JAKARTA, Indonesia — A large fire broke out at a fuel storage depot in Indonesia’s capital on Friday, killing at least 17 people, injuring dozens of others and forcing the evacuation of thousands of nearby residents after spreading to their neighborhood, officials said.
The fuel storage station, operated by state-run oil and gas company Pertamina, is near a densely populated area in the 0Tanah Merah neighborhood in North Jakarta. It supplies 25% of Indonesia’s fuel needs.
At least 260 firefighters and 52 fire engines were struggling to contain the blaze in the nearby neighborhood, fire officials said.
Video of the fire broadcast on television showed hundreds of people in the community running in panic while thick plumes of black smoke and orange flames filled the sky and firefighters battled the blaze.
A preliminary investigation showed the fire broke out when a pipeline ruptured during heavy rain, possibly from a lightning strike, said Eko Kristiawan, Pertamina’s area manager.
He said the fire would not disrupt the country’s fuel supply.
Satriadi Gunawan, who heads Jakarta’s fire and rescue department, said people living in the residential area were still being evacuated and were being taken to a nearby village hall and a mosque.
“The fire caused several explosions and quickly spread to residential houses,” Gunawan said.
He said at least 17 people were dead, including two children, and 50 had been hospitalized, some with severe burns.
Indonesia’s minister of State-Owned Enterprises, Erick Thohir, expressed his condolences to the victims and their families and ordered Pertamina to thoroughly investigate the fire and focus on quickly assisting the community.
“There must be an operational evaluation in the future. I’ll continue to monitor this case,” Thohir said in a video statement.
Fire at Indonesian fuel storage station kills 17
MARCH 03, 2023
Firefighters try to extinguish a fire at a fuel storage station operated by Indonesia's state energy company Pertamina in Jakarta, Indonesia on March 3, 2023.
Reuters
JAKARTA — At least 17 people were killed when a fire broke out on Friday (March 3) at a fuel storage station operated by Indonesia's state energy company Pertamina in the capital Jakarta, an official at the city's main firefighting unit said.
The fire, which started after 8pm local time, burned some houses and sent nearby residents in the densely populated areas into a panic, some of whom fled with their belongings, footage from broadcasters showed.
A Pertamina spokesperson said late on Friday that the fire had been extinguished at about 10.30pm.
Fire was still seen around residents' houses after that, a firefighting station official said on the unit's Instagram account.
Two of the fatalities were children, while 50 people were injured including one child, according to Rahmat Kristanto, an official at the firefighting unit.
Most of the injured people suffered from burns and the government will pay for their medical treatment, Jakarta's acting governor Heru Budi Hartono told reporters.
Shortly after the fire started, explosions could be heard in footage shared on social media, although Reuters was not able to authenticate the clips.
Near the storage station, residents crowded the area while firefighters carried orange body bags from the fire. Jakarta's disaster-mitigation agency said residents had been evacuated into nearby mosques.
Siswandi, a 21-year-old resident, said the scene "was chaotic, as we were running away alongside injured victims who were half burned, and it caused panic among people," adding that he was taking all of his valuable documents from his house.
The call centre of Jakarta's main fire station said it had dispatched 51 units to the Plumpang area in North Jakarta, adding that the fire was huge.
Pertamina said in a statement that the cause of the incident was still being investigated and that evacuation efforts were ongoing.
The company said the fuel supply for the Jakarta area remained secure as it planned to divert supply from other terminals.
Pertamina chief executive officer Nicke Widyawati apologised for the fire and said it would "reflect internally to avoid similar incidents from ever occurring again".
The fuel station has a capacity of over 300,000 kilo-litres, according to the country's energy ministry.
Firefighters try to extinguish a fire at a fuel storage station operated by Indonesia's state energy company Pertamina in Jakarta, Indonesia on March 3, 2023.
Reuters
JAKARTA — At least 17 people were killed when a fire broke out on Friday (March 3) at a fuel storage station operated by Indonesia's state energy company Pertamina in the capital Jakarta, an official at the city's main firefighting unit said.
The fire, which started after 8pm local time, burned some houses and sent nearby residents in the densely populated areas into a panic, some of whom fled with their belongings, footage from broadcasters showed.
A Pertamina spokesperson said late on Friday that the fire had been extinguished at about 10.30pm.
Fire was still seen around residents' houses after that, a firefighting station official said on the unit's Instagram account.
Two of the fatalities were children, while 50 people were injured including one child, according to Rahmat Kristanto, an official at the firefighting unit.
Most of the injured people suffered from burns and the government will pay for their medical treatment, Jakarta's acting governor Heru Budi Hartono told reporters.
Shortly after the fire started, explosions could be heard in footage shared on social media, although Reuters was not able to authenticate the clips.
Near the storage station, residents crowded the area while firefighters carried orange body bags from the fire. Jakarta's disaster-mitigation agency said residents had been evacuated into nearby mosques.
Siswandi, a 21-year-old resident, said the scene "was chaotic, as we were running away alongside injured victims who were half burned, and it caused panic among people," adding that he was taking all of his valuable documents from his house.
The call centre of Jakarta's main fire station said it had dispatched 51 units to the Plumpang area in North Jakarta, adding that the fire was huge.
Pertamina said in a statement that the cause of the incident was still being investigated and that evacuation efforts were ongoing.
The company said the fuel supply for the Jakarta area remained secure as it planned to divert supply from other terminals.
Pertamina chief executive officer Nicke Widyawati apologised for the fire and said it would "reflect internally to avoid similar incidents from ever occurring again".
The fuel station has a capacity of over 300,000 kilo-litres, according to the country's energy ministry.
Reuters
Firefighters try to extinguish a fire at a fuel storage station operated by Indonesia's state energy company Pertamina, in Jakarta, Indonesia, March 3, 2023. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan
JAKARTA, March 4 (Reuters) - Indonesian officials called for an investigation and an audit of state energy company Pertamina's (PERTM.UL) facilities after a fire at its storage facility killed 13.
The fire, which started at around 8 pm (0100 GMT) on Friday from a fuel pipe at Pertamina's Plumpang fuel storage depot in capital Jakarta, quickly spread to nearby houses and sent residents in the densely populated area into panic.
Authorities initially put the death toll at 17 but revised it later to 13. Dozens were injured and hundreds were evacuated.
The fire had been extinguished by early morning hours on Saturday, North Jakarta fire fighter official Abdul Wahid said.
"I have ordered Pertamina to immediately investigate this case thoroughly," State-Owned Enterprise Minister Erick Thohir said via his Instagram page.
"There must be an operational review," he added.
Sugeng Suparwoto, who heads parliament's energy committee, called for an audit of Pertamina's facilities.
"All facilities, whether refineries or storage, must be audited again," he said on KompasTV, noting that Pertamina often had fire incidents at its facilities.
In 2021, a major fire broke out at Pertamina's refineries in Balongan and Cilacap.
Sugeng also said there should be a bigger distance between Pertamina's storage facilities and residential areas. "For a facility with Plumpang's capacity, there should be at least one to two kilometres distance with residential area."
Plumpang, with a storage capacity of over 300,000 kilo litres, is one of Pertamina's biggest fuel terminals.
Dense residential area stands outside the Plumpang's outer wall, separated only by a narrow street, a Reuters witness said.
Local residents could smell the fuel around 30 minutes before the fire, Abdul Syukur, who lives nearby, told KompasTV.
"The smell was so strong there were people throwing up and some nearly fainted," he said.
CEO Nicke Widyawati said Pertamina will launch an internal review, while ensuring that Jakarta's fuel supply will remain secure as the company diverts supplies from other terminals.
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