Fire at Pasir Gudang chemical plant brought under control

PASIR GUDANG: Thick smoke coming  from a chemical factory here caused thousands working and living around the industrial area here to panic.

However, Pasir Gudang Fire and Rescue station chief Ibrahim Omar said the fire was believed to have started from the factory's quench water treatment tanker.

He added that the fire was prevented from spreading to other parts of the factory due to  quick action by the department.

"The fire only damaged about five percent of the whole factory area and we managed to control it within 43 minutes," he said.

Ibrahim pointed out that the department received a distress call at around 2.35pm and immediately deployed three fire engines with 15 firemen to the scene.

"There were no injuries or loss of life during the incident as we able to put it out before the fire cause any serious damage," he said.

Ibrahim also said that the department was investigating the cause of fire and the total damage.