Widow killed in Tanjung Priok fire

JAKARTA: An 80-year-old widow died in a fire that destroyed 50 houses in Muara Bahari, Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, early on Saturday.

Police are still investigating the cause of fire.

According to witnesses, the fire began in a rental house when a lit candle fell into a pile of old clothes and plastic cups. The flames quickly spread in the densely populated area.

Mak Peang, the woman who died, lived five houses away from the house where the fire began, tempointeraktif.com reported.

Firefighters had difficulty putting out the blaze because of a lack of hydrants in the area. -- JP