Server Room at Istiqlal Mosque Catches Fire During Tarawih Prayers
The server room at Istiqlal Mosque in Central Jakarta caught fire on Wednesday evening, 18 February 2026. The blaze is believed to have originated from an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) device located beneath an electrical panel in the room.
Muhammad Ramdan, an officer from the Istiqlal Fire Brigade Post, said the initial report was received from mosque security at approximately 20:40 local time. When firefighters arrived at the scene, the room was already filled with thick smoke, with one remaining point of fire still burning beneath the panel.
"When we arrived, the room was already filled with smoke, but there was still one point of fire burning below. We extinguished it with a fire extinguisher," Ramdan said.
According to Ramdan, the fire itself was not particularly large. However, the dense smoke prevented crews from entering without respiratory equipment. Firefighters used full personal protective equipment and self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) to carry out the suppression operation.
The response was swift. According to Ramdan, the fire was extinguished approximately five minutes after crews arrived on scene, at around 20:45 local time. Firefighters then proceeded to ventilate the smoke from the room.
At the time of the incident, tarawih prayers were still being conducted on the floor above the server room. Worshippers appeared unaware of the fire, and the incident did not disrupt the prayers in any way.
Agus Sya'ban, duty officer at the Central Jakarta Fire and Rescue Service, confirmed that the fire did not spread to other rooms, with only the server room affected.
A total of 20 personnel with four fire engine units were deployed to the scene. The proximity of the fire station to the Istiqlal complex was credited with hastening the response time and preventing the fire from spreading.
The precise cause of the fire remains under investigation. Officers suspect the source was the UPS device, which functions as a backup power supply during voltage drops. However, the technical cause will be examined further by an investigation team.
Conditions at the site have been reported as safe, with all smoke cleared from the room. No casualties were reported in the incident.
Muhammad Ramdan, an officer from the Istiqlal Fire Brigade Post, said the initial report was received from mosque security at approximately 20:40 local time. When firefighters arrived at the scene, the room was already filled with thick smoke, with one remaining point of fire still burning beneath the panel.
"When we arrived, the room was already filled with smoke, but there was still one point of fire burning below. We extinguished it with a fire extinguisher," Ramdan said.
According to Ramdan, the fire itself was not particularly large. However, the dense smoke prevented crews from entering without respiratory equipment. Firefighters used full personal protective equipment and self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) to carry out the suppression operation.
The response was swift. According to Ramdan, the fire was extinguished approximately five minutes after crews arrived on scene, at around 20:45 local time. Firefighters then proceeded to ventilate the smoke from the room.
At the time of the incident, tarawih prayers were still being conducted on the floor above the server room. Worshippers appeared unaware of the fire, and the incident did not disrupt the prayers in any way.
Agus Sya'ban, duty officer at the Central Jakarta Fire and Rescue Service, confirmed that the fire did not spread to other rooms, with only the server room affected.
A total of 20 personnel with four fire engine units were deployed to the scene. The proximity of the fire station to the Istiqlal complex was credited with hastening the response time and preventing the fire from spreading.
The precise cause of the fire remains under investigation. Officers suspect the source was the UPS device, which functions as a backup power supply during voltage drops. However, the technical cause will be examined further by an investigation team.
Conditions at the site have been reported as safe, with all smoke cleared from the room. No casualties were reported in the incident.