Alleged arsonist believed killed in Tanah Tinggi fire

JAKARTA (JP): Relatives of a mentally handicapped man believe the charred remains of a body found in the man's burned out house in Tanah Tinggi, Central Jakarta, are his.

The house of the victim, Naswar Anas, known as Iwan, who residents had said caused the fire Tuesday night, was one of hundreds of destroyed homes.

A neighborhood chief, Dimyati, said 217 homes on Jl. Sumbadra in the Johar Baru subdistrict were gutted. He said 265 families, or 1,436 people, became homeless, not 1,000 families as police had earlier reported.

Residents said Iwan had played with matches.

Abdul Hamid, Iwan's brother-in-law, said yesterday family members were sure the victim was Iwan because his children had all returned home a few hours later after the fire was put out at 10 p.m.

"Nobody else was in the house except Iwan, his wife and three (of eight) children," Hamid said.

Residents and firefighters found the body, which was burned beyond recognition, on the first floor of his house.

The body was previously believed to be one of three children: Ujang, 18, Wahyuni, 12, and Diah, 5.

Hamid speculated the body fell from the second floor where he was tied up. Iwan was restrained after one of his sons found him playing with matches Tuesday afternoon.

Hamid said Iwan had been suffering from stress since he lost his job at an insurance company, Asuransi Murni, a few years ago.

Iwan was buried at the nearby Kawi-Kawi public cemetery, Hamid said.

On Tuesday night, a neighbor, Ahmad, said Iwan was seen carrying a box of matches outside his house Tuesday afternoon and had tried to set fire to it, but residents stopped him.

"Iwan said he wanted to roast cassava," Ahmad said.

It was believed Iwan had poured kerosene inside his house before he lit a match.

Yesterday fire victims were being housed at some nearby buildings, including Yayasan An-Nur, a social foundation, the nearby Al-Falah mosque and the basement of a low-cost apartment in the area.

A communal kitchen was set up by the Indonesian Red Cross city branch yesterday.

The Central Jakarta Fire Department deployed for the first time yesterday a new kitchen-equipped bus containing two stoves, two refrigerators and a generator.

The bus cooked 200 kilograms of eggs and 100 kilograms of rice, firefighter Daniel Taroreh said.

Residents were seen scavenging for remains of their gutted homes.

"We hope the government will allow us to rebuild our houses," a resident said.

Central Jakarta Mayor Abdul Kahfi said the mayoralty was still studying designated land use of the scorched area.

"We can't decide now," Kahfi said. He said the area was not yet designated as an area to build low-cost apartments.

"But in the long-term, low-cost apartments will be erected to solve problems in densely populated areas," he said, citing city policy. (jun)