Indonesia: Hundreds evacuated, 5 wounded in massive fire at Balongan oil refinery

A massive fire broke out at Indonesia’s Balongan oil refinery in Indramayu, run by state firm Pertamina causing serious threats to human lives and property. At least 5 were reported injured, and several others went missing as firefighters evacuated nearly 1000 stranded inside the burning refinery. The refinery located in West Java was caught ablaze early Monday morning following a huge explosion, the cause of the accident, however, has not yet been determined by the Indonesian authorities, multiple local news outlets reported. 

Plumes of thick black smoke were seen in the sky in the footages that were circulated on social media as the structure that hosted 125,000 barrels per day was charred to ashes. Those that sustained injuries were now being treated at the local hospitals, Pertamina spokesman Ifki Sukarya said in an official statement. He added that while it remains unclear what caused the fire inside the facility, the bad weather conditions, heavy rain thunder, and lightning made the incident worse. Firefighters and first responders were summoned at the scene to take control of the situation and douse the fire, he said, adding that as many as 950 living in the vicinity of the refinery were moved safely. 

Staff accounted for, none hurt

All staff at the oil refinery was accounted for, and no one was hurt, he said. According to sources of CNA the fire spread from the storage unit of the oil refinery, and the processing plant had incurred no damage. Pertamina’s one of the largest oil refineries, located 225km east of the capital Jakarta, processed most of Indonesia’s crude oil from the Duri and Minas fields in the Riu province. It supplied oil to the capital Jakarta and Java island. Java police will initiate the probe to investigate the deadly incident. 

Residents told Indramayu’s local newspaper Teraspendopo that a loud blast resonated in the surrounding as the sky turned crimson from the thick flames that could be seen from miles away on the road. The fire, still raging at the site, turned the atmospheric temperature to extremely hot. Residents were moved to safe harbors at several government-owned facilities, such as the Islamic Center and the Pendopo Indramayu. The fire mitigation and response team was deployed on the scene battling the flames that consumed the refinery and were difficult to extinguish. 

(Image Credit: Twitter/@Zilla38892029)