A fire tore through a seven-story office building in Jakarta on Tuesday, killing at least 22 people, including a pregnant woman, police said.
The blaze engulfed the structure in Central Jakarta’s Kemayoran neighborhood around midday, sending thick black smoke over the area and triggering panic among nearby residents and office workers.
Central Jakarta Police Chief Susatyo Purnomo Condro said the fire is believed to have started on the first floor before racing upward through the building.
Hundreds of responders and 29 fire trucks were dispatched to contain the flames. Authorities said the cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Many workers in the building, which served as a sales and storage office for a drone company, were out for lunch when a battery began sparking in a storage and testing area, Condro said, citing several witnesses.
