Warisi has been staying at the temporary shelter in the Rasela RPTRA since Saturday. He does not know where to go if the evacuation post is no longer available. All of Warisi's property was destroyed by the fire.
By
REBIYYAH SALASAH
·6 minutes read
REBIYYAH SALASAH
Warisi, a resident of RT 012 RW 009, shows the location of his house which was affected by the fire at the Pertamina Plumpang Depot, Tuesday (7/3/2023)
As her house is no longer habitable, Selvi Rohmana decided to stay in an evacuation center at the North Jakarta PMI office in Koja. Likewise, Soni Junaidi has not returned home since the fire because his house is badly damaged and needs to be repaired.
A large fire at the fuel storage complex owned by state-owned oil and gas company Pertamina in Plumpang, Koja, North Jakarta, on Friday evening (3/3/2023), scorched the houses of residents in RW 001 and 002 community unit, Rawa Badak Selatan village.
Based on data from the Jakarta Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD), as of Tuesday (7/3), as many as 172 residents were still living in evacuation shelters. One hundred and sixty-five of them took refuge at the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) Headquarters in North Jakarta and the rest at the Rasela Child-Friendly Integrated Public Space (RPTRA), Rawa Badak Selatan.
The damage to residents’ houses varied, depending on the direction of the wind during the fire. The house belonging to Selvi Rohmana (19), a resident at the RT 006 neighborhood unit and the RW 001 community unit, for example, was completely destroyed. Meanwhile, the house of her sister-in-law, Sonia Junaidi (30), was cracked and there was damage in the windows. The items are still intact.
“In fact, the distance between my house and my sister's house is less than 10 meters. The fire only burned the clothesline,” said Selvi.
Sonia did not want the cracked parts of the house to harm her and her family, so she also chose to stay at the evacuation center.
What I could take with me when escaping from the fire were only the clothes on my body and my cell phone
Warisi (40) has been staying at the temporary shelter in the Rasela RPTRA since Saturday. He does not know where to go if the evacuation post is no longer available. Apart from the house, Warisi's other assets were also destroyed by the fire.
"What I could take with me when escaping from the fire were only the clothes on my body and my cell phone," said the resident of RT 012 RW 009.
The same thing was conveyed by Neni (52), whose rented house in RT 012 RW 009 was burned to the ground. Neni does not know where to go if she is not allowed to stay in the evacuation center any more. This woman who works as a scavenger every day has no money to rent a house anymore.
REBIYYAH SALASAH
Rahma with her daughter Khanza (4) at an evacuation shelter built by residents of RT 012 RW 009 Rawabadak Selatan, Koja, North Jakarta, Tuesday (7/3/2023).
Rahma (32), one of the residents affected by the fire, felt relieved by the news the government had asked Pertamina to relocate the Plumpang fuel depot to state owned port operator PT Pelindo's land. The resident of RT 012 RW 009 acknowledged he felt comfortable living in Tanah Merah.
The house of the mother of two was burned to the ground. “Actually, I'm afraid to live there again. That's why Pertamina has to ensure they are safe, and there won't be another explosion," said Rahma.
On Monday (6/3), State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Thohir said the Pertamina Plumpang Depot would be relocated to land owned by PT Pelabuhan Indonesia or Pelindo. Construction is expected to be completed in 3.5 years.
Erick also said a buffer zone would be created around the depot, 50 meters from the fence (Kompas, 7/3/2023). In other words, residential areas within that radius will be relocated to a safer place.
The fire in the vital object area is not the first. On Sunday (18/1/2009) at 8:30 p.m., fuel tank number 24 containing 5,000 kiloliters of gasoline caught fire at the Pertamina Plumpang Depot. The fire started with three loud explosions and a strong vibration causing the residents of Plumpang, Kelapa Gading Barat, Rawa Badak Selatan, Tugu Selatan and Tanah Merah to flee their homes.
A similar atmosphere of fear was recorded when a fire engulfed the Pertamina Plumpang Depot, on Friday night. Hundreds of residents ran to save themselves from the large flames.
As many as 19 people died and 40 others suffered burns, so they had to be treated intensively in hospitals, including Pertamina Central Hospital (RSPP), South Jakarta.
Deputy chairman II of the Jakarta Office of the National Alms Agency (Baznas) said residents affected by the fires were still being recorded. So far the Bazis office in the city has distributed basic needs, such as food, needs for children and the elderly, as well as personal hygiene kits.
"We are still coordinating in the field because the data is very dynamic," said Saat, when asked about the data-collection period.
REBIYYAH SALASAH
Evacuation shelters at the Indonesian Red Cross headquarters in North Jakarta, Koja, Tuesday (7/3/2023). A total of 165 people are still in that place.
Temporary shelter
Pertamina is also still monitoring the latest condition of the victims, as conveyed by Pertamina's vice president of Corporate Communication Fadjar Santoso. While data collection is ongoing, Pertamina promises to meet the basic needs of the residents.
Fadjar said Pertamina was also preparing temporary housing for residents, especially those whose houses were on fire and vulnerable residents, such as the elderly, children, women, pregnant women and people with disabilities.
“Of course we are preparing, as soon as possible they can move to temporary housing. It's impossible for them to be in the evacuation tents all the time,” said Fadjar.
The issue of compensation to residents, said Fadjar, would be informed to residents after data collection was complete. Meanwhile, regarding the safe zone, Fadjar ensured it would be studied first, while still paying attention to the fate of residents around the depot. "We focus on short-term solutions first, including setting up temporary housing," said Fadjar.
Studies and communication with local governments are included in Pertamina's medium-term solutions. Fadjar emphasized Pertamina would also establish communication with residents to reach mutual agreement.
Meanwhile, as the situation became more conducive around the Pertamina Plumpang Depot, the number of evacuees decreased by almost half compared to the first day the evacuation post was opened last Saturday. However, at the North Jakarta Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) Headquarters, the number of refugees increased from 71 to 165 people.
According to the head of North Jakarta PMI Headquarters, Nurhasanudin, some residents gradually returned home because their homes were habitable again. Their houses were not destroyed or burned. They previously took refuge in a relative's house and now choose to take refuge in PMI North Jakarta, because basic needs are available, such as food and health services.
"We are following directives from the mayor regarding the establishment of command posts, namely during the emergency response period of one week until Saturday (11/3). After that, we will wait for further instructions," said Nurhasanudin.
So far, the death toll at the Pertamina Plumpang Depot fire has amounted to 19 people. As many as 39 other people are being treated by medical teams in nine hospitals.
This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi.
