Father Attempted to Breach Massive Fire to Save Two Children in Pulogadung

A house in Kayu Putih, Pulogadung, East Jakarta, caught fire, killing two siblings. Local security officer Agung recounted that the children’s father had attempted to breach the already large flames to save them.

Agung shared the account at the scene on Tuesday (28/7/2026). He said the father initially came to the security post to wait for a relative on Sunday (26/7) evening.

“The father was chatting with me at the post. He came over, and I asked him, ‘Hey, Boss, didn’t bring your motorbike?’ ‘No, waiting for a relative,’ he said. ‘Don’t go in, just stay here,’” Agung stated.

He said another resident then arrived and reported the fire. The father immediately sprinted towards his house.

“He was panicked, panicked, running,” Agung said.

Agung revealed the father immediately wanted to force his way through the growing fire. However, residents held him back because they saw the flames had already spread.

“After that, he realised, ‘My children are inside,’ and he tried to go in, but we kept holding him back because the fire was already huge,” he said.

Agung mentioned the father then broke down in tears. He said the residents are mourning the incident.

“It was just so pitiful. He cried uncontrollably after that,” he said.

As previously reported, the fire struck a house located on Jalan Pulo Mas Utara 2B, Pulogadung, at around 7.31 pm Western Indonesian Time on Sunday (26/7). According to witness accounts, the incident began when a neighbour heard a loud bang.

Upon inspection, the blaze had already grown and was spreading rapidly. Nine fire engines were deployed.

The extinguishing process was only completed at 9.21 pm Western Indonesian Time. The two victims who died were identified as siblings.

“The two victims were a younger and older sibling. Born in 2011 and 2018,” said Pulogadung Police Chief Kompol Gomos Simamora when contacted by journalists on Monday (27/7).