Children among 30 killed in Indonesia matchstick factory fire

An Indonesia disaster official says at least 30 people were killed in a fire that swept through a house that doubled as a match factory in North Sumatra.

Residents examine the damage after a fire razed through a match factory in Langkat, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Friday, June 21, 2019.

Residents examine the damage after a fire razed through a match factory in Langkat, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Friday, June 21, 2019. Source: AP

At least 30 people including children were killed in a fire that swept through a house that doubled as a match factory in Indonesia's North Sumatra province.

Irwan Syahri, from the local disaster mitigation agency in Langkap district, said the dead included three children, and many of the victims are burned beyond recognition.
Paramedics put body bags containing the remains of the victims of a fire that razed through a match factory in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia.
Paramedics put body bags containing the remains of the victims of a fire that razed through a match factory in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Source: AP
TV footage showed the burned-out structure, its floor littered with twisted metal, blackened corrugated roofing and other debris.

The house owner, an elderly woman identified only as Ros, told MetroTV that she had rented the property for the past four years to a businessman from the provincial capital Medan.

North Sumatra police spokesman M.P. Nainggolan said the cause of the fire was still unclear.
A number of people including children were killed in the fire that swept through a house that doubled as a match factory.
A number of people including children were killed in the fire that swept through a house that doubled as a match factory, an official said Friday. Source: AP
Millions of Indonesians work in unsafe conditions in informal or poorly regulated industries and accidents and fatalities are common.

Dozens died in the collapse of an unlicensed gold mine in North Sulawesi in February, and at least 47 people including underage workers were killed by a blaze at a fireworks factory in a Jakarta satellite city in October 2017.


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Children among 30 killed in Indonesia matchstick factory fire | SBS News