Fireworks disposal sets off explosion at police facility
A fireworks disposal operation gone wrong has set off a fire and explosions at a police evidence storage facility in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur.
The fire started after the police were done with the disposal process this evening, Sentul OCPD Beh Eng Lai told Malaysiakini.
“The place is for storing evidence. After...
A fireworks disposal operation gone wrong has set off a fire and explosions at a police evidence storage facility in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur.
The fire started after the police were done with the disposal process this evening, Sentul OCPD Beh Eng Lai told Malaysiakini.
“The place is for storing evidence. After (the disposal process), the fire started,” he said.
Three people suffered minor injuries, the Kuala Lumpur Fire and Rescue Department said in a statement. They have been sent to Kuala Lumpur Hospital for treatment.
Meanwhile, netizens took to social media to share photos and videos of billowing smoke from the facility. The crackle of fireworks can be heard in many of the videos.
“A line of cars in Sentul are currently on fire due to fireworks explosion. The explosion was so loud The Fennel was literally shaking!” said the Twitter user @xnxthxrmxthxr95.
The Fennel is a building complex about 350m away from the scene.
According to The Star, the Sentul police were disposing the explosives after obtaining a court order to destroy 1,059 boxes and 35 sacks of firecrackers that were seized in March. The contraband is reportedly worth over RM4.17 million.
The report said the Sentul police had invited the media to the event, and the Fire and Rescue Department were on standby to douse the fireworks pile as it was set to be crushed by a backhoe.
“The standard operating procedure for disposing of the case’s items is in accordance with the court order, which is to crush it with a backhoe while dousing it with water,” Beh told Malaysiakini.
The fire department, meanwhile, said it mobilised 60 personnel from five fire stations to tackle the blaze after receiving an emergency call at 6.22pm.
When the first responders arrived 10 minutes later, 30 percent of the building was engulfed in flames, as well as 80 percent of an open area outside involving 50 vehicles.
“The fire was bought under control at 7.04pm. The cause of the fire is still under investigation,” it said.
