Fire guts Purwakarta market

PURWAKARTA, West Java: Hundreds of kiosks at the Simpang market here went up in flames yesterday morning.

"There are more than 500 kiosks and only 10 are left standing," said a local official assessing the damage.

The fire spread quickly leaving little time for firefighters to save the clustered kiosks, Antara reported. Efforts turned toward containing the fire so it would not spread to nearby residential areas.

Simpang market was opened in 1992 as a place for street vendors to sell their wares without obstructing traffic.

The cause of the fire is still unknown. (mds)