Fire razes Karet Tengsin slum

Annastashya Emmanuelle, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Two people were injured and over a thousand were left homeless when a fire swept through 195 houses in the early morning hours of Monday in the Karet Tengsin area of Central Jakarta.

Fire officials said they suspect the blaze was started by a gas stove which exploded in one of the homes. The fire spread rapidly, engulfing nearby buildings in the densely populated slum area.

The victims, numbering approximately 1,150 people, are sheltering at the local mosque, Jami Al-Mujahirin, and on the grounds of two low-rent apartment buildings in the area.

Surrounding residents have built a public kitchen to provide food for the victims, while a private Muslim medical group has established a temporary clinic at the mosque.

Fire razed hundreds of homes in the same location in 1996 but owners promptly reconstructed the buildings, mostly to rent out.

Victims said four to five families usually shared one house, in which a family would rent a two-square-meter room for about Rp 75,000 (US$7.61) per month.

"The houses were mostly of a nonpermanent structure, that's why they burned easily," said Tri Kurniadi, the deputy district chief of Tanah Abang, who was surveying the site.

"The condition of the homes was unsuitable for occupation, and they were built adjacent to one another, that is very unsafe," he added.

The city administration was planning to build another low-rent apartment building on the site to replace the homes in the area, but it has yet to agree on a price with landowners.

"They won't budge from their asking price of Rp 5 million ($507) per square meter. That's ridiculous and way too expensive for our budget," Tri said.

Despite their misfortune, the victims were in good spirits as most had gone through the first fire in 1996.

"I'm not quite sure what am I going to do next, but I'm sure I'll get by," 40-year-old Romini said, as she told The Jakarta Post that she ran out of her home in panic with only a towel around her when the fire broke out. She lost all her possessions, but a neighbor lent her the shirt and skirt she was wearing.

Another victim, Karsih, said she would wait in the shelter with her three children until the houses were rebuilt.

"That's what I did in 1996. Rent here is cheap and all of my customers live around here. I have no plans to move to another area," said Karsih, a masseuse.