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.