Hotel catches fire again, dozens hurt

Fadli, The Jakarta Post, Batam, Riau

A four-star hotel in Batam tourist resort, Riau province, caught on fire for the second time this month, causing dozens of workers and guests to be hospitalized.

According to reliable resources at private Harapan Bunda Hospital on the island, most victims of the second Harmoni Hotel fire suffered respiratory problems and were discharged after necessary medical treatment, but several others remained unconscious and were still in intensive care.

"They are still in critical condition, and they'll need to stay in intensive care for several days at least," said a nurse, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The victims were on the second floor of the Harmoni Hotel on Jl. Imam Bonjol, Nagoya, Batu Ampar subdistrict, when it caught fire, allegedly from an electrical short-circuit. Hundreds of guests and workers panicked and called for help when the fire started blazing at midday on Monday.

The fire was extinguished within an hour after the local administration deployed several fire trucks to the scene.

Witnesses said the fire brigade arrived only 15 minutes or so after thick smoke started coming out of the hotel's second floor.

Chief of the Batam, Rembang and Galang Islands Police Sr. Comr. Suhartono said the police had cordoned off the hotel's second floor for further investigation and that no workers, guests nor hotel management would be allowed into the area.

He added they had yet to finish their investigation into the causes of the first fire at the same hotel.

At least one foreigner and three Indonesians were killed and 22 others injured when fire broke out on Sept. 7 at the hotel.

The fire broke out early in the morning, only hours after it had hosted a wedding party at its 9th-floor ballroom. The party had ended by midnight.

A short circuit was also the suspected cause of the first fire at the hotel, which was occupied by more than 200 guests at the time.

Batu Ampar district head Guntur Sakti expressed his disappointment with the hotel management, who he said did not inform him about the hotel's reopening following last week's fire.

"According to the bylaw, the management should inform the local administration before they reopen the hotel to ensure that all things had been fulfilled in line with the reopening criteria.

"I knew of the reopening from banners put up at the airport and seaport. It is strange that the local administration was not informed about it," he said, adding he was considering imposing sanctions against the management.

Chief of the local tourism office Buralimar expressed his deep concern over the poor security system at the hotel.

"The hotel will not catch fire twice in two weeks if the security system is good, so local authorities should take action against the management for the violation (of security precautions)," he said.