Caught Fire While Looking for Parking

A fire broke out in a Jimny jeep in a mall parking area on Jalan Sultan Iskandar Muda, Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta, on Saturday (17/10/2026) night. Officers received the incident report at 22:07 WIB (Western Indonesia Time).

The Head of the Operations Section of the South Jakarta Fire and Rescue Sub-agency (Gulkarmat - Penanggulangan Kebakaran dan Penyelamatan), Sjukri Bahanan, conveyed that preliminary suspicions regarding the cause of the fire were related to electrical trouble and a leak in the vehicle's fuel line. 'Suspected cause: a short circuit and a leak in the gasoline hose line,' said Sjukri.

Smell of Gasoline Detected from Under the Car

The fire started when the jeep's owner entered the mall parking area looking for a spot to park the vehicle. Upon stepping out of the vehicle, the owner smelled gasoline coming from the undercarriage of the car.

As the owner was about to move to find another parking spot, sparks appeared from under the hood. The fire then quickly expanded and engulfed the vehicle.

Fire Extinguisher Failed, Building Hydrant Extinguished Flames

Mall security guards attempted to extinguish the fire using a fire extinguisher (APAR - alat pemadam api ringan). However, the effort failed to bring the blaze under control.

Officers then used a building hydrant in the PIM (Pondok Indah Mall) 5 area until the fire was successfully put out. The South Jakarta Gulkarmat Sub-agency dispatched one medium-pressure fire truck unit with six personnel to handle the incident. The extinguishing operation was declared complete at 22:25 WIB.

No Casualties, Losses of IDR 100 Million

Although it caused no casualties or injuries, the fire resulted in material losses estimated to reach IDR 100 million. This incident serves as a reminder of the importance of periodic inspections of vehicle electrical systems and fuel lines.

Cause Remains Preliminary Suspicion

The information regarding the electrical short circuit and fuel hose leak remains a preliminary suspicion based on the incident response report submitted by the Head of Operations (Kasiops - Kepala Seksi Operasi) of South Jakarta Gulkarmat. Further investigation to determine the exact cause of the fire falls under the authority of the relevant agencies.

The incident serves as a reminder for vehicle owners to routinely check the condition of electrical systems and fuel lines, especially if an unusual odor such as gasoline is detected from the engine area or under the car.

Vehicle owners are also advised not to force the engine to start if they detect a strong smell of fuel, and to ensure fire extinguishers are available and functional both inside the vehicle and within building parking areas.