Fire leaves people homeless

Fire leaves people homeless

BANDUNG: An early morning fire destroyed 58 houses in a slum
area here yesterday, leaving 478 people homeless and causing
losses of about Rp 2 billion (about US$850,000).

Eyewitnesses said that the fire started at 1.30 a.m. at the
house of the neighborhood chief, Dadang, and quickly spread to
adjacent properties.

Dadang said the fire caused residents to flee their homes in
panic. "They were alerted by security guards. People ran out to
find most of the neighborhood had been devastated," he said.

The fire brigade, who arrived late, did not fully extinguish
the fire until four hours later. The victims said they lost most
of their belongings because the fire spread very quickly.

The cause of the blaze is still under investigation. No
injuries were reported. (17/pan)