Indonesia oil blaze doused after two days
Firefighters battle a fire at Balongan refinery, operated by state oil company Pertamina, in Indramayu, West Java on Wednesday.
Indonesian firefighters on Wednesday extinguished a large blaze at one of the country’s biggest oil refineries that had been burning for more than two days after an massive explosion.
Crews blasted fire-suppressing foam to quench the flames at two storage tankers after the inferno seriously injured at least six people on Monday.
Thick plumes of black smoke shot into the sky at the Balongan refinery in West Java, owned by state oil company Pertamina.
The huge fire was eventually put out yesterday afternoon.
“(The company) will continue to cool and monitor the tanks,” Pertamina spokesperson Agus Suprijanto said.
“Hopefully the cooling process will go smoothly and we can resume operations.”
About a thousand locals have been evacuated from the area.
The cause of the fire was not clear, but the company said the blaze began during a lightning storm.
The local disaster agency said one person died from a heart attack after the explosion.
