Fire victims plead for relief aid

JAKARTA (JP): The victims of a fire, which gutted 1,297 houses in Pademangan Barat subdistrict, North Jakarta, Tuesday, pleaded for donations yesterday, including school uniforms for their children.

Pademangan subdistrict head Asmuri said the fire, which left 5,508 people homeless, burned not only the houses but also many other possessions.

"Hundreds of students have lost their school uniforms and shoes in the fire," Asmuri said.

Most children did not attend school yesterday because, besides having no uniforms, they had to help their parents put all their remaining possessions in order.

Asmuri said that some of the victims were being temporarily sheltered in two huge tents in front of the King's Theater on Jl. Ampera, the Babussalam mosque, neighborhood community offices and a nearby sports hall.

Others remained in their damaged houses after covering the roofs with plastic sheets.

A communal kitchen was set up by the city's branch office of the Indonesian Red Cross in front of the theater.

The City Social Services Offices donated a wide variety of articles yesterday, ranging from 1,000 plastic mats, 500 blankets, 100 sarongs, 300 praying veils for women to hundreds of glasses of mineral water.

The residents also asked the North Jakarta mayoralty to allow them to rebuild their houses, which were located partly on state land.

"Allow us to rebuild our houses. A makeshift house is enough. We don't have anywhere else to stay," Tumi, a mother of three children, said.

Asmuri asked the residents to be patient since the mayoralty was still investigating the site.

Ninety percent of the 4.5 hectares burned belonged to the state and only 10 percent of the residents had certificates permitting them to live there, he said.

At least one man died of a heart attack Tuesday on knowing there was a fire on his neighborhood.

Mohamad Madori, 52, a barber in Mangga Besar, West Jakarta, returned home at about 5:30 p.m. Even though the father of seven found that his house had not been destroyed, he was apparently so shocked he collapsed and died in front of his house.

Madori was buried yesterday in the Karet public cemetery in Central Jakarta.

Police were still investigating the cause of the fire, Asmuri said.

He said the fire began in a house belonging to a resident named Apul.

The fire, which started at about 12:20 p.m., destroyed houses in 22 units of four community neighborhoods. (jun)