Massive blaze erupts at Indonesian ammunition site, media says

An ambulance stands by during a massive fire that broke out at a military ammunition facility in Bekasi, on the outskirts of Jakarta, Indonesia, March 30, 2024, in this photo taken by Antara Foto. Antara Foto/Fakhri Hermansyah/

JAKARTA -Indonesian firefighters were on Saturday struggling to extinguish a massive fire that broke out at a military ammunition facility just outside the capital city, media reported.

There were no immediate report of casualties in the incident in Bekasi, on the outskirts of Jakarta.

Amateur footage broadcast by local network KompasTV showed bright orange flames lighting up billowing clouds of smoke against the night sky, while loud explosions and screams could be heard from several kilometres (miles) away.

Reuters could not immediately verify the footage.

KompasTV reported that the fire broke out at about 1830 local time (1130 GMT) and was not yet under control.

An army official, Kristomei Sianturi, told KompasTV authorities were evacuating people from nearby neighbourhoods. Firefighters could not yet extinguish the fire, he said.

(Reporting by Fransiska NangoyWriting by Kanupriya KapoorEditing by Bernadette Baum, William Maclean)