Indonesia's Police Investigate Explosion in Aceh Residential Area

BANDA ACEH, KOMPAS.com - A blast was reported at around 10 am in front of houses in Teungku Lhong Dua Street, Banda Aceh on Monday, March 1. No injuries were reported. 

"Around 10 am I suddenly heard a loud explosion," said Nita, one of the residents whose house is opposite the location of the incident, on Monday.

"No idea where the blast came from. I was inside [the house],” she added.

Nita immediately ran away from the house after the explosion. Nor did she have time to look at the source of the explosion.

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Shortly, the National Police's bomb disposal team from the Indonesia Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (Inafis) was deployed to the scene. 

During the inspection, people were not allowed to cross as the police cordoned off the roads. 

When the explosion occurred, the streets were deserted. The cause of the incident is still under investigation.

"It is not yet known what the source of the explosion was because the bomb disposal team and Inafis team were still conducting searches and investigations," said Police Chief Commissioner Joko Krisdiyanto.

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However, the joint team has found metal pieces from the explosion site and they were then taken for further investigation. The team also sought to find out whether the explosion was related to a bomb case or not.

"We secured the pieces of the explosion, there was one metal piece," said Joko.

"The type of the metal has yet to be identified. The forensic laboratory team will carry out the investigation.”

This explosion damaged roads, houses, and a food cart.

(Writer: Raja Umar | Editor: Abba Gabrillin)

Sources: https://regional.kompas.com/read/2021/03/01/154739878/ledakan-di-depan-rumah-warga-di-aceh-tim-penjinak-bom-turun-ke-lokasi

https://jakarta.tribunnews.com/2021/03/01/ledakan-keras-terjadi-di-aceh-tempat-jualan-nasi-hancur-tim-penjinak-bom-menemukan-logam