Firefighters battle chemical storage warehouse blaze for over eight hours

NIBONG TEBAL: Firefighters battled for over eight hours to put out a fire at a warehouse storing chemicals in the Valdor Industrial Area in Sungai Bakap here today.

Penang Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM) operations officer, Mohamad Tarmizi Abdul Salam said his team received an emergency call at 5.45 am before the first fire brigade from the Sungai Bakap Fire and Rescue Station (BBP) was deployed to the location.

"Upon the firefighters' arrival, they found the fire was raging and an estimated 70 per cent of the warehouse was affected.

"The fire affected a warehouse covering an area of 3,716 square metres used to store various chemical and flammable liquids, causing the fire to spread quickly," he said when contacted today.

He said more than 100 officers and firefighters, assisted by firefighters from Volunteer Fire Brigade together with 10 fire engines were involved in the operation that took more than eight hours.

Mohamad Tarmizi said until 5 pm today, the firefighters were in the final stage of dousing the fire and his team was making sure the ambers were completely extinguished.

He said there were no casualties or injuries in the incident, and the cause of the fire and the total loss were still under investigation.

-- BERNAMA