PALMOILMAGAZINE, North Sumatra — A fire broke out at the PT Evyap Sabun Indonesia plant in the Sei Mangkei Special Economic Zone (SEZ), Bosar Maligas, Simalungun Regency, North Sumatra, on Thursday (Sept. 3, 2026), killing three workers.
The three workers reportedly died after jumping from the sixth floor of the facility while attempting to escape the flames and heavy smoke.
According to information reported by Kompas on Friday (Sept. 4), the victims were identified by their initials as NE, 43; MR, 26; and S, 39. They were employees of PT Nirwana Mahanu Putra, a construction contractor working on finishing activities at the Evyap plant.
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Simalungun Police Public Relations Chief AKP Verry Purba said the three workers were serving as welding helpers on the sixth floor when the fire occurred.
“As the fire and smoke had reached the sixth floor and an explosion-like sound was heard, the victims attempted to jump from the sixth floor,” Verry said in a written statement.
The three victims were residents of Batubara Regency, North Sumatra. They had reportedly been working on the finishing project at the PT Evyap Sabun Indonesia plant for only about four days.
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Three Workers Die After Falling from Sixth Floor
Verry said the three workers died after falling from the height. They were initially taken to Karya Husada Hospital in Perdagangan for medical treatment before being transferred to the mortuary at Perdagangan General Hospital in Simalungun.
The victims were later picked up by their respective families and transported by ambulance to funeral homes.
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Police said no additional casualties had been reported as of the latest information available.
Fire Reportedly Started on Third or Fourth Floor
The fire was reported at around 10:10 a.m. local time. Preliminary information received by police indicated that the blaze may have originated on the third or fourth floor of the plant.
An explosion-like sound was also reportedly heard from an area of the facility known as the Biding section.
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Firefighting operations continued until at least around 2 p.m., with emergency personnel working to contain the blaze and secure the surrounding area.
A total of 13 firefighting and emergency vehicles were deployed to the site from various government agencies, security forces and companies operating in the area.
The vehicles included two units from Kinra, one from PT Evyap, three from the Simalungun Regency Government, three from the Batubara Regency Government, one Indonesian Army unit, one Auto Water Cannon (AWC) vehicle from Brimob Company II B Siantar, one unit from PT Basic, and one from the Pematangsiantar City Government.
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Joint emergency teams continued firefighting and response operations at the site.
The exact cause of the fire and the extent of damage to the PT Evyap Sabun Indonesia facility remained under investigation, with authorities yet to provide further details. (P2)
