A sewage truck containing human waste spurted its contents across several houses in Munjul sub-district, Cipayung, East Jakarta on Sunday, prompting a protest against the septic tank service company operating in the area from local residents.
“There were five houses that got sprayed, the [spurt] polluted the surrounding area within a radius of around 10 meters,” Sumarjono, who heads the Munjul sub-district, said yesterday, as quoted by state news agency Antara.
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Sumarjono explained that the poo-blast incident occurred on Sunday at around 4.30pm, when the operator had just finished desludging septic tanks in the area. The tanker truck, which has a 6,000-liter capacity, was parked inside a warehouse with the waste remaining inside.
He suspected that the burst was caused by a methane gas build-up inside the tank, which had remained closed for a long time.
“[The truck] was circling [the residential area], then the sewage inside the tank was opened, and then the burst happened. Waste water still contained gas, and it bursted out of the sewerage pipe,” Sumarjono continued.
Sumarjono said the owner of the septic operator company attempted to clean up the human waste from the warehouse as well as the walls of the residents’ homes, despite him offering to call the fire department.
45-year-old Nurhayati, who lives only 10 meters from the septic operator, told Antara that the poo explosion has happened a few times over the years.
“We have been disturbed by the stench in the last three years. They often clean the truck’s tank and the water is dumped into the residents’ drains,” Nurhayati said.
Nurhayati said the residents had wanted to storm the operator’s place, asking them to move elsewhere, but the neighborhood officials forbade them, suggesting that the matter should be resolved through a discussion.
Sumarjono said a discussion is planned for today, noting that the residents have also complained about the operator’s working procedure prior to this incident.
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