Three Kapok Warehouses In Madiun Destroyed By Fire

Madiun, East Java, Jan 20 (ANTARA) - Three kapok warehouses and a house owned by Saikun in Kare sub-district, Madiun regency, East Java fell into flames Thursday night. Kare police chief Ajunct Police Cimmissioner Sukatin said the fire broke out at 9 pm but there were no fatalities and material loss amounted to hundreds of millions of rupiah. "The fire has not been totally put out, because the fire engines had difficulties in reaching the accident site. It took about an hour to reach it," he said. Two fire engines arrived at the location two hours after the fire broke out. The location of the fire was about 50 kilometers from the city center. "The police is still trying to find the cause of the mishap, but right now the focus is on putting out the flames," Sukatin said. One of the local villages said the fire spread so quickly because the warehouses did not only contained kapok, but also farm produce like clove and corn. "There were tons of kapok, and several hundreds of kg of clove and corn, ready for sale," he said. He said the source of the fire was one of the warehouses. "We have phoned the fire department, but still no news for the past two hours. There was information that one of the fire engines was stuck in the mud because of the steep site of Wilis mountain," he said. Consequently while waiting for the other fire engines, the villagers tried to put out the flames together with whatever they have, like small hoses, buckets and others. But the flames even grew. "It was strongly suspected that the fire was caused by a short electrical circuit. But nobody was sure about it, as the police is also still helping the villagers put out the flames," he added. In the meantime, the owner of the warehouses and house, Saikun, look very shocked by the fire.