Over 40 People Feared Dead in Nightclub Fire in Indonesia

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, July 09, 2002

Over 40 People Feared Dead in Nightclub Fire in Indonesia

A joint team of fire brigade, the army and the police found 40 bodies on Monday evening from a burned-out karaoke house in Palembang, capital of Indonesia's South Sumatra province.

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A joint team of fire brigade, the army and the police found 40 bodies on Monday evening from a burned-out karaoke house in Palembang, capital of Indonesia's South Sumatra province.

More people are feared dead since not all parts of the five-story building have been cleared up and because the building has neither emergency exits nor stairs.

The team has combed the first to the third floors entirely, but was unable to get into the remaining parts of the building due to heavy smoke.

Those who escaped from the incident said that many people gathered in the fourth and fifth floors for their lives when the incident took place, according to the Kompas Daily on Tuesday.

The blaze started late Sunday and is believed to have been caused by a faulty electrical installation in the karaoke house building which consists of different bars and restaurants on all floors.

Palembang Police Chief Sutarman said 15 witnesses had been summoned, including the karaoke house's manager identified only as Dwi. Its owner was not in Palembang for investigation.

Dwi has been detained to give clear sketch of the fourth and fifth floors, since the rescue team has been equipped only by the old blueprint of the once three-story building.

Though the karaoke house building was located in Palembang's busiest business area, the rescue team was succeeded in preventingthe fire from spreading to nearby buildings.

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