Jakarta’s Chinese community suffered a terrible loss this morning and the whole capital lost an important part of its historical heritage.
A fire blazed through Vihara Dharma Bhakti, a 400-year-old Chinese temple located in the Petak Sembilan area of Glodok, in the early hours of this morning. It is the oldest Chinese temple in Jakarta.
Although the cause cause of the fire is not clear yet, firemen said the abundant amount of incense and flammable materials in the temple made the blaze difficult to put out.
Firemen from West Jakarta as well as local citizens worked together to put out the fire and save as much as they could, especially the statues of the temple’s sacred Gods.
After several hours the fire was put out, but not until the temple was a smoldering husk of its former self.
But Vihara Dharma Bhakti has been rebuilt before over the course of its long history, and so we hope that the community that prayed and worshipped within its sacred confines will be able to rebuild it again sometime in the near future.
