Pasar Baru traders get new location

BEKASI: At least 800 retailers who lost their kiosks in a fire that gutted the Pasar Baru traditional market in Bekasi on Tuesday have been moved to a temporary site behind the damaged market building.

"We want the traders to get back to business immediately," deputy mayor Mochtar Mohamad said on Wednesday.

Hartini, 46, who sells vegetables, said she was grateful to be able to reopen. "This is better than not having any place to do business, although the location is dirty and muddy."

The administration has not said when it plans to begin rebuilding Pasar Baru, the largest market in the mayoralty.

The market was damaged in a blaze that began at about 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday. The fire, which did not cause any fatalities, is thought to have been sparked by an explosion at an electricity terminal box in the market's Blok B/II.

Bekasi Police's head of security at vital facilities, Adj. Comr. Imam, said police were still investigating the cause of the fire. -- Antara