Fire guts hall in Ancol park

JAKARTA (JP): A fire destroyed the stage and gutted the interiors of the Rama Shinta performance hall in the Taman Impian Jaya Ancol amusement park in North Jakarta on Sunday morning.

No fatalities were reported, but material losses have been estimated at Rp 50 billion (US$5 million), according to park sources.

A Pademangan Police officer said on Sunday that it took 13 fire engines to put out the fire at 11:20 a.m. It is believed the fire was caused by short circuit.

"The fire began at about 7:05 a.m ... firemen arrived there about 25 minutes later. The fire was probably caused by a short circuit, but police are still investigating the case," officer Tarman told The Jakarta Post by telephone.

Antara quoted North Jakarta fire brigade officer Sumardi as saying Ancol staff only reported the fire at 7:29 a.m.

"It was a little bit late," Sumardi said.

Witnesses at the scene told the news agency the interiors of the performance hall were totally destroyed because they were made of flammable materials such as plastic and plywood.

"The entire interior and the stage inside the hall were burned. The amusement park itself opened at about 11 a.m., so there were no injuries or fatalities," Tarman said.

North Jakarta Police questioned three Ancol employees -- a security guard and two maintenance staff, as witnesses following the fire.

PT Pembangunan Jaya Ancol general manager Waluyo said the three employees were on duty when the fire took place.

"The accident mostly caused damage to computerized devices, but they were insured," Waluyo said.

It was the second such fire in the park, with the Castle of Mystery being damaged in 1997.

Rama Shinta performance hall, which stands on 2,000 meters of land, was opened several years ago. It hosted various performances, including those based on stories from the Hindu epic the Ramayana.

The performances have been a constant favorite among park visitors.

The last large fire in the capital occurred in the densely populated area of Krukut, West Jakarta, on March 1.

The fire was believed to have started from a burning candle that fell on to the floor.

The fire, which took 19 fire engines three hours to put out, razed 54 houses. (ylt)