Fire at Indonesian oil depot kills 17; thousands evacuated
Jakarta (AP): A large fire broke out at a fuel storage depot in Indonesia's capital on Friday, killing at least 17 people, injuring dozens of others and forcing the evacuation of thousands of nearby residents after spreading to their neighbourhood, officials said.
The Plumpang fuel storage station, operated by state-run oil and gas company Pertamina, is near a densely populated area in the Tanah Merah neighbourhood in North Jakarta. It supplies 25 per cent of Indonesia's fuel needs.
At least 260 firefighters and 52 fire engines were struggling to contain the blaze in the nearby neighbourhood, fire officials said.
Video of the fire broadcast on television showed hundreds of people in the community running in panic while thick plumes of black smoke and orange flames filled the sky and firefighters battled the blaze.
A preliminary investigation showed the fire broke out when a pipeline ruptured during heavy rain, possibly from a lightning strike, said Eko Kristiawan, Pertamina's area manager.
He said the fire would not disrupt the country's fuel supply.
Satriadi Gunawan, who heads Jakarta's fire and rescue department, said people living in the residential area were still being evacuated and were being taken to a nearby village hall and a mosque.
"The fire caused several explosions and quickly spread to residential houses," Gunawan said.
He said at least 17 people were dead, including two children, and 50 had been hospitalized, some with severe burns.
Indonesia's minister of State-Owned Enterprises, Erick Thohir, expressed his condolences to the victims and their families and ordered Pertamina to thoroughly investigate the fire and focus on quickly assisting the community.
"There must be an operational evaluation in the future. I'll continue to monitor this case," Thohir said in a video statement.
Friday's fire was the second large blaze at the Plumpang fuel depot. In 2014, a fire engulfed at least 40 nearby houses but no casualties were reported.
Fahmi Radhi, an energy analyst, urged Pertamina and the government to immediately move the depot away from the nearby community settlements.
"Pertamina has been negligent by not using international standard security systems," he said in an interview with KOMPAS TV. He said that since the 2014 fire there had been no efforts to put such a system in place and that regular inspections should be conducted to avoid future fires.
"Pertamina's board of directors should be held responsible for this deadly fire by being dismissed immediately," Radhi said.
An oil spill in 2018 caused a fire that killed five people and sickened hundreds in the port city of Balikpapan. Authorities said it came from a broken pipe that Pertamina was using to transfer crude oil.
In March 2021, a fire at Cilacap gasoline storage facility at the largest oil refinery on the main island of Java prompted the evacuation of 80 nearby residents and injured at least 20 people.
Cilacap is one of six Pertamina refineries with a processing capacity of 270,000 barrels a day. Eight months later, more than 900 people were evacuated after a fire broke out at the Pertamina Balongan Refinery in West Java province.
Fire at Indonesian oil depot kills 17; thousands evacuated#Indonesia pic.twitter.com/1HQfcGlgKs
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) March 3, 2023
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Suvendu Adhikari says Bangladesh should be taught a “lesson like Israel taught Gaza”
Kolkata: Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly Suvendu Adhikari has sparked controversy after stating that Bangladesh should be taught a “lesson like Israel has taught Gaza.”
Adhikari made the remark while speaking to reporters outside the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata on Friday, December 26. “These people must be taught a lesson, just like Israel taught Gaza. Our 100 crore Hindus and the government working in the interest of Hindus must teach them a lesson just as we taught Pakistan a lesson in Operation Sindoor,” he said.
The statement came amid protests being held outside the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission since December 22, following the lynching of Dipu Chandra Das, a 27-year-old garment factory worker in Bangladesh. Das was killed on December 18 in the Mymensingh district, where his body was allegedly hung from a tree and set on fire in public view.
Adhikari was part of a five-member delegation that met senior officials of the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission on Friday. Speaking after the meeting, he claimed that the diplomats had “no answer to most of his questions” related to the killing and the situation of minorities in Bangladesh.
Reacting to his comments, the All India Trinamool Congress accused the BJP of promoting hate and intolerance. In a post on X, the party described Adhikari’s remarks as hate speech and alleged that they amounted to a call for violence, while also questioning the absence of legal action against him.
Adhikari’s statement has added to political tensions in West Bengal and raised concerns over inflammatory rhetoric linked to sensitive international and communal issues.
The @BJP4India’s Bengal ‘face’ wants a Gaza like operation against Bangladesh. Dog whistles that the @narendramodi government is for ‘Hindus’ only. Do you concur with this @narendramodi @DrSJaishankar ? Dirty politics of Divide and Rule won’t work in Bengal, @SuvenduWB pic.twitter.com/vLWm9b3AXb
— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) December 27, 2025
