Mob rampages steel plant

Mob rampages steel plant

MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi: An angry mob attacked a steel plant in Makassar, South Sulawesi, on Tuesday, which they blamed for polluting their neighborhood.

The attack on PT Bawaraja took place following an explosion at the factory earlier in the morning, which prompted at least 200 residents to throng the compound.

The rioters damaged the factory's windows, its office equipment and cars.

Baco, chief of the factory's security guards, said the attack was launched suddenly, when about 100 employees were working at the rear of the plant, so that nothing could be done to prevent it.

He admitted that local residents had protested several times against the plant's operation and for the pollution it produced.

"We guarantee that there is no pollution because we have waste processing facilities and high chimneys," Baco claimed.

Commenting on the explosion that triggered the attack, he said it came from the plant's iron processing residue dump, which might have resulted from a water spill, but added that it was harmless. --JP