Cleric and family killed, 17 houses destroyed in fire

Cleric and family killed, 17 houses destroyed in fire

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A mass prayer on Wednesday evening at a mosque at Jl. Luar Batang
1, Penjaringan subdistrict, North Jakarta, apparently was the
last meeting between 27-year-old Hamidi, an Islamic cleric, and
his neighbors.

Hours later, a fire that swept through the neighborhood at 5
a.m. on Thursday destroyed 17 houses and killed Hamidi and his
wife and daughter.

Neighbors, who deeply loved the family who were known for
their kindness, were still mourning their tragic death at the
Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital (RSCM)'s morgue in Central
Jakarta.

They said all residents of the 17 houses had managed to escape
the fire including Hamidi and his younger sister, who is still
receiving treatment for her burns.

Realizing that his 20-year-old wife Nur Farikha, who was four-
months pregnant, and 16-month-old daughter Nabila were still
trapped in the fire, Hamidi went back to the house to rescue
them.

Tragically, the whole family perished in the fire.

Neighbors found the family's corpses three hours later when
firefighters had managed to extinguish the blaze. Hamidi and Nur
were found embracing Nabila.

"We didn't know that Hamidi and his family were still inside
their house. It was very dark and very noisy at the time as
people were trying to extinguish the fire," said Zainuddin, one
of the neighbors.

Another neighbor, Yayat, was devastated by the news.

"Hamidi was a good person, so was his wife. We'll all miss
them," he said, weeping, adding that all the neighbors respected
the family.

Yayat said that as a cleric Hamidi taught his neighbors for
free. Neighbors would often gather at Hamidi's 24-square-meter
house to practice qasidahan, or Islamic singing.

Many neighbors speculated on the cause of the fire. Some put
the blame on a short circuit while others pointed to a gas tank
explosion.

However, Penjaringan subprecinct chief, Comr. Krishna Murti,
has yet revealed the cause of the fire and only said that his
officers were still investigating the case.

The bodies of Hamidi and his family were carried to Bogor,
Nur's hometown, for burial.