Banten Manpower Office Urges Companies to Consistently Implement OHS Procedures
The Banten Provincial Manpower and Transmigration Office (Disnakertrans) has urged all companies, industries, and business actors within the Banten region to consistently implement Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) procedures in their respective workplaces.
“We continuously urge everyone to always prioritise OHS. In fact, every year, we observe a dedicated OHS Month,” stated Septo Kalnasting in Serang on Monday.
The Head of Banten Disnakertrans’ statement follows an explosion at a chemical factory, PT MCCI, in the Merak Cilegon area on 25 May. The office is currently conducting an inspection of OHS procedures in collaboration with the Ministry of Manpower of the Republic of Indonesia. “The inspection process at MCCI is currently underway,” he added.
According to Septo, the implementation of OHS procedures within industrial environments is vital to creating a safe and comfortable working environment for employees. This is expected to increase productivity and achieve a ‘zero accident’ target. He noted that OHS awareness has been promoted for over 40 years, with annual awards presented to OHS mentors.
In April 2026, Banten Governor Andra Soni presented awards to approximately 240 companies in Banten, recognising them as OHS mentors, alongside 78 companies for their commitment to HIV/AIDS awareness. These awards, categorised into silver, gold, and platinum, were presented during the OHS month activities held from 12 January to 12 February 2026.
Regarding the incident at PT MCCI, the Banten Regional Police, alongside the Forensic Laboratory Centre of the Indonesian National Police (Bareskrim Polri), are conducting investigations and crime scene processing related to the explosion that occurred in Cilegon on Monday (25/5).
Banten Regional Police Head of Public Relations, Kombes Pol Maruli Ahiles Hutapea, stated that to complete the investigation, police are continuing to examine several witnesses, including victims, local residents, and company representatives.
Maruli revealed that, according to PT MCCI representative Arif Budiawan, the incident occurred during normal operations when a loud explosion was heard from the PTA-1 production area. The blast triggered the Early Warning System automatically, prompting the company to instruct all employees to evacuate as a safety precaution.
“The preliminary suspicion is that the incident was caused by a pipe leak due to extremely high temperature pressure. This leak is believed to have caused a pressure surge, resulting in a significant explosion,” he explained. Following the incident, MCCI took immediate action by temporarily halting all activities in the affected area and conducting technical inspections of the piping and reactor installations. Tragically, two employees were injured as a result of the incident.