Mangga Dua fire guts homes, shops

Fire gutted four houses and two auto repair shops on Jl. Mangga Dua Selatan in Central Jakarta on Wednesday at about 6:30 p.m. First Brig. Rudi of the Central Jakarta Police said the owner of one of the repair shops, Hartono, 53, died of a presumed heart attack when he saw his destroyed property. The fire is thought to have been started by a short circuit in Hartono's shop, which had been idle for several years. Twenty-five fire trucks were deployed to the scene of the fire. -- JP