A large fuel storage facility in Indonesia has exploded, triggering a huge blaze and killing at least 15 people, according to reports.
The fuel storage station is located near a densely populated neighborhood in the nation’s capital Jakarta.
After the explosion, the fire spread through the neighborhood for more than two hours.
The depot is owned and operated by the Indonesian energy company Pertamina.
Footage from the incident shows terrified Jakarta residents screaming and wailing for help as a fireball engulfs that facility.
WATCH:
Indonesian officials called for an investigation and an audit of state energy company Pertamina's facilities after a fire at its storage facility killed 15 https://t.co/YbZJch2eXD pic.twitter.com/bOeI10ohPv
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 4, 2023
Dozens of people were injured and hundreds more displaced after the fire from a fuel pipe at the Pertamina’s Plumpang fuel storage facility spread to nearby homes in a densely populated area of Jakarta.
JUST IN – Massive fire at fuel storage station belonging to state-owned energy company Pertamina at North Jakarta, Indonesia – multiple people dead. pic.twitter.com/zSovcWb3AJ
— Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) March 3, 2023
From Reuters:
Indonesian officials called for an investigation and an audit of state energy company Pertamina’s (PERTM.UL) facilities after a fire at its storage facility killed 15.
The fire, which started at around 8 pm (0100 GMT) on Friday from a fuel pipe at Pertamina’s Plumpang fuel storage depot in capital Jakarta, quickly spread to nearby houses and sent residents in the densely populated area into panic.
Authorities initially put the death toll at 17 but revised it later to 15. Dozens were injured and more than a thousand people were displaced, police said on Saturday.
“I have ordered Pertamina to immediately investigate this case thoroughly,” State-Owned Enterprise Minister Erick Thohir said via his Instagram page.
“There must be an operational review,” he added.
Fire at fuel depot station in Jakarta
A fire broke out at a fuel storage depot in Jakarta, killing more than a dozen people.
The fuel storage station is located near a densely populated neighbourhood, where the fire spread for more than two hourshttps://t.co/jFzCQ0xIMP pic.twitter.com/CiuGegtEkX
— Sky News (@SkyNews) March 4, 2023
A fire broke out at an oil depot in Jakarta, Indonesia
14 people died and 42 were injured. pic.twitter.com/k6RzMNf1uf
— Malinda 🇺🇸🇺🇦🇵🇱🇨🇦🇮🇹🇦🇺🇬🇧🇬🇪🇩🇪🇸🇪 (@TreasChest) March 3, 2023
The cause of the fire is still being investigated, but the company said in a statement on Saturday that a pipe leak was detected before the fire started.
The facility had a fuel storage capacity of 300,000 kilo-liters.
This comes after huge fires broke out at three Mexican-owned energy facilities last week.
As Slay News reported, all three facilities, including one in Texas, suddenly exploded in the space of 24 hours.
READ MORE: 3 Separate Oil Facilities Explode Suddenly in 24 Hours
