Pasar Kebon Kembang fire

Pasar Kebon Kembang fire

The Bogor administration should be held responsible for the
fire that razed Pasar Kebon Kembang on March 28, 1996, regardless
of whatever argument and reason the officials, particularly
Bogor's Regent Eddy Gunardi, have in defense.

Why wasn't the fire brigade given special training to combat
fire, using sophisticated equipment? Why didn't the
administration learn from past lessons, like the Internusa Plaza
fire which occurred a month earlier? Are they waiting for another
bigger fire to occur?

A day after the devastating Pasar Kebon Kembang fire, the
Bogor regent said: "This calamity has been sent by God. So I
sincerely call on the traders to be patient." In my mind, such a
statement is illogical and reflects lack of responsibility. The
regent could make this statement only if his administration had
taken all necessary precautions for any possible eventuality,
including the provision of adequate fire-extinguishing equipment,
so that human lives could be saved.

The manager of the Ramayana Department Store should also be
held responsible for the Pasar Kebon Kembang fire. Why was it
that the manager did not immediately inform the fire brigade and
the police that some employees were trapped in the building when
the fire started at about 5 a.m.? The proprietors of the
department store seemed to be too afraid of goods being looted if
they let people go into the building where the employees were
faced with death. Did the company regard human lives so cheaply?
Wasn't the insurance compensation enough to cover all the damaged
materials? Please note that the insurance company rejected
insurance applications from middle-scale traders on the grounds
that there was too much of a risk of the market being gutted by
fire.

TAMI KOESTOMO

Bogor, West Java