News Item
Fire at a prison in Indonesia kills at least 41 people
By Masrur Jamaluddin, CNN and Reuters
Updated 0441 GMT (1241 HKT) September 8, 2021
An ambulance is seen at the main entrance gate of Indonesia's Tangerang prison following a fire overnight on an overcrowded block, September 8, 2021.
(CNN) At least 41 prisoners have been killed and at least eight injured after a fire tore through an overcrowded prison block on the outskirts of the Indonesian capital Jakarta, police said.
The blaze started in the early hours of Wednesday morning local time in Block C of Tangerang Prison, in Banten province, according to Jakarta police spokesman Yusri Yunus.
Yusri said firefighters stopped the fire from spreading to other blocks in the prison and battled the flames for two hours before it was extinguished.
An investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing but Yusri said they initially suspect an electrical short circuit is to blame.
Rika Aprianti, a spokeswoman of the prison department of the law and human rights ministry, said authorities were still evacuating the facility and "the cause is under investigation."
The block housed inmates being held for drug-related offenses and had a capacity for 122 people, she said. She did not say how many people were present when the fire broke out but confirmed the jail was overcrowded.
The prison in Tangerang, an industrial and manufacturing hub near Jakarta, housed more than 2,000 inmates, far more than its 600 people capacity, according to government data as of September.
Kompas TV showed footage of firefighters trying to put out huge flames from the top of a building. The broadcaster reported 41 people had died and eight had been seriously injured.
Indonesia's Metro TV cited a police report saying that 73 people also had light injuries.
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HEADLINE OF THE TEXT:
Fire at Prison in Indonesia Kills At Least 41 People
SOCIAL FUNCTION:
To inform readers about events of the day which are considered newsworthy or important.
GENERIC STRUCTURE
Main Events
41 Prisoners were killed because of the fire in Block C of Tangerang Prison
Elaboration
Overcrowded Prison block the way out
an electrical short circuit might cause the fire
Source
Rika Aprianti, spokeswoman of the prison department of the law and human rights ministry
Yusri Yunus, Jakarta police spokesman
CNN Indonesia
LANGUAGE FEATURES
Direct Speech
None.
Indirect Speech
Rika Aprianti, the spokeswoman of the prison department of the law and human rights ministry, said authorities were still evacuating the facility and "the cause is under investigation."
Action Verbs: Killed, reported
QUESTIONS:
Why there is an overcrowded prison in Indonesia?
What would the government do to the killed prisoners? Is there any compensation to their family or how?
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