Discotheque catches fire

JAKARTA (JP): All shops at the Glodok Jaya shopping center in Mangga Dua, West Jakarta, were closed yesterday after a fire at the Regent Discotheque on the 9th floor of the building in the early hours of the morning.

A security guard at the shopping complex, Sutaji, said the fire started at 1.30 a.m. when visitors saw smoke billowing out of one of the discotheque's rooms.

Patrons and staff fled the discoteque in panic as security guards attempted, unsuccessfully, to put out the blaze. The fire was not extinguished until about 8.00 am, after 21 fire engines had been called in.

No one was reported injured in the incident. However, an initial estimate puts the loss of property at Rp 3.5 billion ($1.6 million).

"We are investigating the cause of the fire," said Lt. Rikwanto, deputy chief of the Jambusari police precinct, adding that the police would use their forensic laboratory in the investigation.

He said that the fire had taken a long time to extinguish because there were no fire hydrants in the shopping complex. (29)