The Governor of Central Java, Ganjar Pranowo, has called for vessel parking management evaluation after fishing vessels caught fire at Johor Harbor, Tegal City, on Monday evening, August 14, 2023. The fire burned 52 fishing vessels.
Ganjar admitted that vessels are parked in a huddle, causing fires to spread easily in case of burning. “Thus, we asked the organizers of the harbor to mitigate the problem,” said Ganjar on Tuesday, August 15, 2023.
He claimed to continue coordinating with the Tegal city government in mitigating the fire. “The Mayor of Tegal continues to update [on the situation], and we also deployed a team from the province,” said Ganjar.
Ganjar mentioned that he already asked the Tegal Mayor to make sure whether the burned vessels are insured. “If not [insured], we will provide aids,” he said.
According to the data gathered by the police, the fire was seen at 18:15 p.m., from the Kurnia Jaya fishing vessel anchored in Jongor harbor. “However, we are still investigating the cause of the fire itself,” said the Head of the Public Relations Department of Central Java Regional Police Chief Commissioner Satake Bayu Setianto.
There were no fatalities in the incident. Material damages are still being calculated.