GEORGE TOWN, Sept 5 — Five business premises at the iconic Chew Jetty heritage area here were destroyed in a fire that broke out early this morning.
Northeast District Zone 1 operations officer Rosli Ibrahim said no casualties were reported in the incident.
He said the Penang Fire and Rescue Department received a distress call at 1.08am, after which firefighters arrived at the scene about two minutes later.
“The fire involved five premises, including a car workshop, welding shop and timber factory. Firefighting operations were still ongoing as of 3 am, but the blaze has since been brought under control.
“Firefighters’ swift action helped save a nearby petrol station and prevented the fire from spreading to nearby residential areas,” he said when met at the scene today.
Rosli said the operation involved 30 personnel from the Paya Terubong, Jalan Perak and Lebuh Pantai fire and rescue stations, assisted by 17 volunteer firefighters, Malaysian Civil Defence Force (APM) personnel and police.
He said the cause of the fire and extent of the damage were still being investigated.
Meanwhile, victim Toh Aik Aun, 50, said the fire destroyed the T-shirt printing premises he had operated for about 30 years.
“There were hundreds of pieces of customers’ clothing still at the premises. Everything was destroyed,” he said.
Another victim, Hong Jing Lian, 60, said his car painting shop, which had been in operation since 1997, was destroyed in the fire, with losses estimated at RM1 million.
He said a Suzuki Swift, a Mercedes-Benz C-Class and a BMW were among the vehicles caught in the fire at the premises.
Chew Jetty, located along George Town’s historic waterfront, is the largest and one of Penang’s oldest Chinese clan jetties.
Built on stilts above the sea, the settlement has been home to generations of Chinese residents since the 19th century and is located within the Unesco World Heritage Site. — Bernama
