JAKARTA: An explosion rocked the Indonesian police’s Mobile Brigade (Brimob) headquarters in Surabaya, East Java, today at 10.19 am local time, damaging an office space and a vehicle.
East Java Police Chief Inspector General Imam Sugianto stated that the blast originated from leftover mortar explosives stored in a warehouse near an office building.
While no casualties were reported, the incident prompted the deployment of forensic units to investigate.
In a statement, he noted that the remaining war mortar, previously evacuated from residential areas, was scheduled for destruction, but a suitable temporary storage facility is not yet available.
Following the explosion, the police closed off access to Gresik Street, and personnel were stationed around the area.
Local media reported that the explosion’s noise and tremors were felt up to three kilometres away, prompting some residents to seek shelter and others to flee their homes in panic.
Surabaya, famously dubbed the ‘city of heroes’, earned its distinction through the crucial Battle of Surabaya in 1945, a key conflict of the Indonesian National Revolution where local Surabayans clashed with foreign forces. –Bernama
