76 houses gutted in Tambora

JAKARTA (JP): At least 76 houses in Jembatan Lima subdistrict in Tambora, West Jakarta, were gutted by fire on Friday, leaving about 200 people homeless.

The fire, believed to be caused by an electrical short circuit, started at 6:30 a.m. in a house owned by Nursiah. It immediately spread to other houses.

"We panicked upon hearing people's screams for help," Machmud, one of the local residents, said.

It took about two hours for firefighters to extinguish the fire, Partono, an officer of the West Jakarta Fire Department said on Saturday. "We deployed 14 fire engines to the site," he said.

West Jakarta Mayor Sarimun Hadisaputra expressed concern on Friday over the fire, particularly because it happened when city residents were still in the Idul Fitri festive mood.

He urged people to pay attention to the condition of electrical wiring in their houses to help reduce instances of fire caused by short circuits.

Some owners of the gutted houses are still on vacation in their hometowns to celebrate Idul Fitri, while others are being temporarily accommodated in nearby mosques and neighborhood community offices. (hhr)