Man found dead after inhaling poisonous gas

Man found dead after inhaling poisonous gas

JAKARTA (JP): A man was found dead in an underground gasoline
tank at a public gas station on Jl. Meruya Ilir in Kebon Jeruk,
West Jakarta, early yesterday morning.

Police are still investigating the death of Abdul Hanan, 38.
Initial police reports assumed that he died after inhaling
poisonous gas, the volume of which was dangerously high in the
tank.

One of Abdul's neighbors, Asmawi, quoted witnesses as saying
that the victim was trapped in the three-meter deep tank for
about five hours before members of a special police unit arrived
at the scene and brought his body to the surface.

According to Asmawi, Abdul was temporarily hired by the gas
station's owner, Silalahi. Abdul was believed to have climbed
down the tank at around midnight to clean up the almost empty
tank.

He was followed by Wahid, one of Silalahi's employees.

"Less than a minute after Wahid went down, Wahid screamed for
help and shouted hot, hot, hot," said Asmawi.

Employees of the gas station raced to the scene to lift a weak
Wahid out of the tank. Abdul, they said, had fainted and was
immersed ankle-deep in gasoline.

"When they went to rescue Abdul, they found the ladder had
broken in two," said Asmawi.

According to the employees, Abdul did not respond when they
called his name.

Abdul's body was brought to the surface by the police special
unit, who arrived at the scene about five hours later.

Wearing oxygen masks and armed with special equipment, the
police personnel entered the tank and raised Abdul to the
surface. He was already dead.

Severe burns covered Abdul's body, who was still fully
clothed.

Abdul's body was then rushed to the Cipto Mangunkusumo General
Hospital in Central Jakarta for a postmortem while Wahid was
admitted to Sumber Waras Hospital in Grogol for medical
treatment.

The station's owner, Silalahi, was immediately taken by local
police for interrogation.

Asmawi said that Abdul was a construction worker.

"He accepted Silalahi's offer as he had been unemployed for
months and agreed to be paid Rp 30,000 (US$7.50) for the job," he
added.

Asmawi deplored Silalahi's decision to employ people to clean
the tank.

The tank, although empty, was believed to contain poisonous
gas which could be fatal if inhaled without the use of an oxygen
mask or special protection.

"He should have known it was dangerous. They previously used a
machine to clean the tank, but they said that had broken down
recently," he said.

Abdul moved to Jakarta three years ago from Cirebon in West
Java where his family still resides.

According to Asmawi, Abdul was a quiet man and spent most of
his time in the mosque near the gas station. (04)