Fire dept opposes underground market plan
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The city fire department is worried by city-owned market operator Pasar Jaya's plan to develop a seven-story underground building at Block A of Tanah Abang market, Central Jakarta, which was destroyed by fire in February this year.
Department head Johnny Pangaribuan told the media on Tuesday that he did not agree with such construction as it would be very difficult to extinguish a fire if one occurred in such a building.
Johnny cited as an example how difficult it was to extinguish the fire in the parking lot after the bomb blast at the Jakarta Stock Exchange, South Jakarta, in 2000, although the fire was only in the upper basement level.
"It was the toughest fire we had to deal with in the city. I daren't imagine what would happen if there were a fire seven floors below ground level," he said.
He said that smoke would not only cause more casualties, but also great difficulty for firefighters, because the oxygen in their cylinders would run out after 20 minutes to 30 minutes.
"Usually, when fighting a fire, it takes much longer," Johnny added.
If an underground building ultimately was to be chosen, he stressed the need for sophisticated fire prevention systems and extinguishers, including fire sprinklers, alarms, good emergency exit guidance, and, most important of all, an adequate exhaust system.
"Exhaust fans are very important as they must pump the smoke from the building while the fire is still burning," Johnny said.
He revealed his department lacked facilities, as the total of 890 hydrants across the city was far from the ideal 20,000.
He also complained about his department's human resources, as 61 percent of the 2,520 personnel were around 45 years old and the remaining 39 percent were mostly over 30.
Meanwhile, City Business Bureau head Sukri Bey said that executives of PD Pasar Jaya, led by president director Prabowo Soenirman, had beforehand shown the design for Tanah Abang market reconstruction to Deputy Governor Fauzi Bowo.
Apart from the underground structure, Sukri said PD Pasar Jaya also planned to erect a four-story to seven-story building in Block A of the market.
"It is still in the form of a proposal that needs more comprehensive study," Sukri told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
PD Pasar Jaya president Prabowo was unavailable for comment on Tuesday but previously had said that he needed some Rp 400 billion (US$48.19 million) to reconstruct Block A of the market, deemed to be the largest textile market in Southeast Asia.
He said that reconstruction would begin late this year or early next year and would be completed within 14 months to 16 months.
The market comprised six blocks with a total 7,594 kiosks before the fire destroyed 2,420 of them, mostly in Block A, on Feb. 19 this year.