JOHOR BARU: It took almost 10 hours and more than 100 firemen to tame the raging fire that razed a warehouse storing fireworks at the Senai Industrial Zone near Saleng yesterday.
In the 5pm incident, the flames destroyed the storage warehouse, which also stored plastic and rubber materials.
Thick black plumes of smoke could be seen from afar and coupled with the loud explosions left many Johoreans startled.
Kulai district police chief Superintendent Razak Md Said said the fireworks were stored with other flammable materials such as plastics and recyclable scraps in the same premise.
“The Fire and Rescue Department’s forensic team is combing the grounds of the razed factory to determine the cause of the fire,” he said.
Razak said police are also checking with the Kulai Municipal Council on the factory operation to determine whether the outfit was permitted to store explosive materials inside the factory or whether the factory owner was storing it illegally.
Meanwhile Johor Fire and Rescue deputy director (operation) Mohd Rizal Buang said his men were still monitoring the site as the remnants of the burnt plastics still can spark flames.
“As plastic materials are flammable and catches fire easily, it made the operation harder but eventually we were able to control the flames at around 3am today,” he said.
He added the fire could have cause further disaster if it had not been contained as there were seven other factory lots located along in the vicinity.
“We also face difficulties in getting our water source as there are no fire hydrants in in the area. Fortunately we were able to get water from a nearby stream located not far from the factory,” he said.
He added foam was also used to extinguish embers of the burnt plastic, which takes longer than usual to put out.
Rizal said around 120 firemen were deployed from several fire stations around Johor Baru and Kulai. Personnel from the police and Johor Civil Defence Force were also deployed.
Tenaga Nasional Bhd also cut off electrical supply to the warehouse.