Slow To Respond To Fires Of 6 Buildings In Timika Papua, The Arrival Of Firefighters Is Greeted By People's Scorn

BPBD Mimika deploys fire engines to extinguish the fire (Photo Via ANTARA)

PAPUA - Severe fires hit six business buildings in the Budi Utomo Street area, just to the right of the Horison Diana Shopping Center and Hotel complex, Budi Utomo Street, Timika Papua, Tuesday, April 4.

Six business buildings, such as a restaurant, and Unalala Shop which sells various women's clothing and accessories, are leveled to the ground.

Yuliani, an employee of the Timika Oriental Restaurant, said the fire was first seen emerging from a small stall selling Palembang's empek-empek food.

"Earlier around 11.00 WIT, smoke came out of a small kiosk at the front that sells empek-empek. Seeing this, several people tried to put out the fire but were blocked because the stall door was locked. Not long after, the fire continued to grow and burn. several stalls next to it even reached the Unalala Shop", Yuliani said at the location as reported by Antara.

Seeing the fire getting bigger, residents then asked for help from the police who were on guard at the Traffic Police Post near the fork in Budi Utomo Street-Cenderawasih Street.

Mimika Police Head of Traffic Iptu Devrizal and Mimika Police Head of Shabara, Iptu Menase Sayori, immediately rushed to the location of the fire, then contacted the Mimika Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) to ask for help from a fire engine.

While waiting for the arrival of the fire engine, the fire continued to burn and burned all the buildings located between the Diana Shopping Center and the Minang Restaurant Shophouse building to the Tjandra Medika Hospital.

Panic was seen in the Horison Diana Shopping Center and Hotel complex. Diana's employees tried to extinguish the fire by spraying water from the fifth floor of the Hotel Horison Diana to prevent the fire from spreading to the Diana Shopping Center.

Meanwhile, at Tjandra Medika Hospital, the hospital removed all patients and medical equipment anticipating the fire could spread to the private hospital.

The Mimika BPBD fire truck reinforcements arrived at the location at around 12.00 WIT and were greeted with scornful cheers from residents who packed Jalan Budi Utomo around the Diana Shopping complex.

It was recorded that three fire engines were deployed by Mimika BPBD to extinguish the fire at the location of the fire. Even the Mimika Police, led directly by the Head of Ops, Kompol Dionisius VD Paron Helan, deployed a water cannon to help put out the fire. The new fire can be resolved around 12.30 WIT.

Kanit Shabara Mimika Polres Iptu Menase Sayori said his staff had tried to contact the Mimika BPBD to ask for help with fire engines, but they seemed too late to respond.

"From the start, when the fire started to spread, we had contacted the fire department to ask for the help of a fire engine. All of a sudden they only responded an hour later", said Iptu Sayori in a disappointed tone.

As a result of the fire, the loss suffered by the owners of the business premises is estimated at billions of rupiahs.