Fire destroys 10 shop-houses

SAMARINDA, East Kalimantan: Fire gutted 10 shop-houses in Citra Niaga business center on Jl. Yos Sudarso on Saturday night, Antara reported.

The fire started at 4:20 p.m. in one of the shop-houses and quickly spread to other buildings.

Twenty-one fire engines along with 200 firemen deployed to the scene finally put out the blaze at about 10 p.m.

"We had problems in extinguishing the fire because it was located in a densely populated area," Frediansyah, a fireman, said.

The shop-houses contained flammable materials such as cooking oil, building materials and plastics, he added.

No fatalities were reported, while losses and the cause of fire are still under investigation. (edt)