52 feared dead in nightclub inferno
Agencies, Jakarta
Police using explosives blew a hole in a nightclub wall to allow desperate patrons to escape a raging fire that killed up to 52 people in South Sumatra provincial capital of palembang, officials said Monday.
Some people leapt to their deaths from the top of the five- story nightclub Heppi Karaoke in Palembang as flames engulfed the roof, local police spokesman Capt. Arum Prioyono told Associated Press.
The blaze started late Sunday and is believed to have been caused by a faulty electrical installation. Firefighters extinguished the fire on Monday morning.
Rescuers searching through the rubble have retrieved 52 bodies, said Rudi, a fire brigade official.
Police said they could confirm only 42 deaths. But Lt. Tikno of the Palembang police force said he believed more bodies remained in the burned-out building.
The death toll could have been higher had the police not used explosive charges to blast open the wall on the upper floor.
"There may be around 30 more charred bodies on the upper floor. We will smash anything in our way to reach those victims, just like we bombed our way in yesterday," Bastoni, head of the Palembang fire department, said.
Officials blamed poor safety measures behind the death of those 52 people.
Capt. Arum said the karaoke bar had no proper fire exits.
Officials said many of victims were trapped on the upper floors. There was no other way out except the stairway through which to enter these floors.
The absence of alternative entrances and highly inflammable material decorating the building, slowed firefighters' rescue efforts.
"That building had neither emergency exits nor stairs. No preparations for a fire at all. That place should not be there in the first place," Bastoni said.
The Heppi Karaoke consisted of different bars and restaurants on all five floors. Although located in one of Palembang's busiest shopping areas, firefighters were able to prevent the fire spreading to nearby stores.
Police officials said they had detained the manager of the nightclub. Its owner, however, was still at large.
The fire marked Palembang's worst fire in five years. In 1998, a fire at the Megahria store killed 17 people.
In Yogyakarta in 1999, a fire ravaged a theater and killed 14 people, including two Norwegian nationals.
In Central China, a disco fire killed 304 people on Christmas night in 2000 for which the authorities have jailed 23 people for up to 13 years.
A year earlier, one of Mexico City's most popular nightclubs caught fire, killing 20 people. Patrons were prevented from leaving the burning building by disco personnel who insisted they pay their bills first.