Rest Assured, Surrounding Communities are Not Affected by the Tank Incident at Cilacap Refinery

Cilacap, June 1 2021- Pertamina ensures that the surrounding community is safe. The location of the burnt tank area is far from residential areas.

During press conference held (11/6), Area Manager Communication, Relations, and CSR of Pertamina Refinery Cilacap, Hatim Ilwan, said, "The fire occurred in one of the storage tank areas which is located deep in the refinery complex, not in the processing plant. The cause of the fire is still yet to be determined."

On the same occasion, the Deputy Regent of Cilacap, Syamsul Auliya Rahman, ensured that this fire did not impact the surrounding community because the fire point was far from settlements. "People do not need to be panic," he said.

The Deputy Regent also conveyed that the Pertamina Cilacap fire fighting team carried out their duties professionally. "On behalf of the Cilacap Regency Government, we thank Pertamina for handling everything professionally. Whenever needed, The fire team from the district is also ready to be deployed. We, together with the military (TNI) and the police, are ready to help Pertamina as a vital national object," he said.

In the same place, the Cilacap Police Chief, AKBP Leganek Mawardi, stated that the location of the burnt tank was far from residential areas and roads. "The closest is the factory area, about 350 meters from the fire site," he said.

The police, he continued, will be focusing on securing the perimeter and the area around the refinery. His party also sent personnel to patrol and keep residents away from the fire. "We support the handling of the incident process, which is currently in the cooling effort to ensure there will be no more hotspots," added the Police Chief.

As previously stated, a fire incident occurred in one of the tanks/bundwall areas of the Cilacap Refinery at 7.30 PM local time. Until now, cooling process is still being carried out to prevent the fire from reoccurring.

The fire is extinguished out by the help of a foam monitor, which directs the foam spray to the hotspots. A total of 50 firefighters were deployed to extinguish the fire.

At the time of the fire, the tanks in the bundwall area only contained 1/3 of the Benzene product or 1,100 barrels of the 3,000 barrel tank capacity. Benzene is the base ingredient for petrochemicals. It is not related to fuel or LPG products.

When a fire occurs, the Cilacap Refinery still operate normally, and Pertamina ensures that the supply of fuel and LPG will not be disrupted.**