'Public recklessness main cause of fire'<\/p>\n
Following the blaze that razed over 5,500 kiosks at Tanah Abang
\nMarket last week, city residents realized that their properties
\nwere vulnerable to fires. However, public negligence of fire
\nsystems and safety precautions deserved to be blamed for the
\nblaze. The Jakarta Post talked to some residents on the issue:<\/p>\n
Yono, 41, is a meatball soup vendor in West Jakarta, and
\nformerly worked as a construction worker. He lives in
\nPejompongan, West Jakarta, with friends, while his wife and two
\nchildren are in Central Java:<\/p>\n
Actually, I don't know much about the fires that have broken
\nout in several places in Jakarta. I only know of the latest
\nincident in Tanah Abang Market last week.<\/p>\n
I guess most traders there were so ignorant about fire hazards
\nthat they neglected to check for anything which could cause a
\nfire.<\/p>\n
They don't care about safety, as they only think about making
\nmoney.<\/p>\n
Generally, they don't maintain the electrical system in the
\nmarket. They forget that jumbled old cables may short circuit and
\ncause sparks.<\/p>\n
I just wonder that, nowadays, people seem to be getting more
\ncareless and indifferent about safety. It's very different from
\n20 years ago, when I first came to the city. Fires very rarely
\nhappened in the city then.<\/p>\n
It's sad that the longer people are here, the sloppier they
\nbecome about fire safety measures.<\/p>\n
Eka Dewi, 21, is a first-year student at the London School of
\nPublic Relations in South Jakarta. She resides in Karet, South
\nJakarta:<\/p>\n
I guess the people's negligence deserved to be blamed,
\nfollowing the big fire at Tanah Abang Market.<\/p>\n
The fire showed the true picture of how people are becoming
\nmore indifferent to and ignorant of fire safety measures.<\/p>\n
If they cared so much about safety, they would have responded
\nimmediately after the fire gutted the market.<\/p>\n
In a way, I can understand that the economic hardship has
\nforced them to be indifferent in such a way that they don't even
\ncare about each other. They just think about their own lives. I
\nthink this kind of selfishness among city residents has made the
\nsituation worse.<\/p>\n
It seems they don't pay attention to fire systems and
\nequipment. The water hydrants and fire extinguishers were left
\nunchecked, I guess. Perhaps they just think that the fire system
\nis none of their business.<\/p>\n
I think that it would be better to educate the public on how
\nto prevent and fight fires. The more knowledge they have, the
\nmore aware they will be.<\/p>\n
Even so, it's not impossible that the fire was caused by
\narson, by a certain group of people with vested interests. So the
\nmarket and surrounding residences were set on fire on purpose.<\/p>\n
As an aside, the city administration should recognize and
\nreward the city Fire Department more. They deserve life
\ninsurance, because they have to risk their own lives in putting
\nout fires.<\/p>\n
Sadiyo, 50, is an office boy at a private company in Central
\nJakarta. He lives in East Jakarta with his wife and three
\nchildren:<\/p>\n
I reckon that some of the fires in Jakarta were caused by the
\ncarelessness and ignorance of people.<\/p>\n
Most traders in markets, such as those in Tanah Abang or
\nSenen, are only concerned about money and, ironically, neglect
\nfire hazards.<\/p>\n
They are also careless in designing the electrical systems in
\ntheir kiosks that they forget the possibility of short circuits.
\nTraders and city residents in densely populated areas should be
\nmore aware of their electrical systems.<\/p>\n
But I won't leave out the possibility that the fire was lit on
\npurpose, such as what happened to the Taman Puring traditional
\nmarket last year. The culprits wanted to take advantage of the
\nsituation in many ways.<\/p>\n
I'm pretty sure that public negligence of fire and electrical
\nsystems is the main cause of the fires in the city, even though I
\ndon't really watch television or read the newspaper. -- Leo
\nWahyudi S.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/public-recklessness-main-cause-of-fire-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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