Hong Kong fire: Indonesian helper ‘was always there’ for others up to the end

Indonesian domestic worker Desi Widiana had spent half her life in Hong Kong, caring for other people’s families while her own waited thousands of kilometres away. Now, her relatives in Sambi village in East Java are waiting again – this time for her final homecoming. Widiana, 40, was among nine Indonesian domestic helpers killed in a massive fire that tore through Wang Fuk Court in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district on November 26, leaving at least 160 people dead and thousands homeless. She had come to Hong Kong 20 years earlier, leaving Kediri regency at the age of 20 to work as a live-in helper. Her younger brother, Puthut Pintoro, 38, told This Week in Asia he first learned something was wrong when fellow Indonesian helpers in Hong Kong began calling him on the day of the fire. “They were from the same village as us in Indonesia and said they worked in the same building. They were safe, but they had been searching and couldn’t find her.” Pintoro said he tried to call his sister repeatedly, but she did not answer. “The next day, I got a call from the Indonesian consulate in Hong Kong to say they suspected that she was missing. The police and firefighters were looking for her.” It was only a few hours later, Pintoro said, that he got another call confirming his worst fears. Widiana had been found dead in the flat where she worked, alongside the elderly woman she had been looking after. “The Hong Kong police sent me a picture so that I could confirm her identity. They did it very cleverly, so that I could only open it once and then it disappeared.” Pintoro said that he was grateful the photograph was not saved on his phone, as he did not wish to remember his sister in that way. He added that she had been found huddled together with her ward, and that the pair had died of smoke inhalation rather than burns. He was not sure which floor Widiana worked on. Pintoro lives in Jayapura in Indonesia’s Papua province and Widiana’s parents live in Kalimantan, or Indonesian Borneo, but they all rushed back to their home village in Kediri when they heard the news of her death. For Pintoro, it was a journey of over 4,500km (2,800 miles). On ‘standby’ Pintoro said that his parents were bereft and could only “standby” and wait for their only daughter to be returned home. “I have been doing everything. Filling in all the forms and coordinating with the authorities. My parents can’t do anything; they are so upset. If you ask them a question, they can’t even answer.” While Widiana had worked in Hong Kong for two decades, she had only had two employers in that time, and was happy because they had both been kind and nice families, Pintoro said. Both of her previous employers had called the family following the disaster to express their condolences – including the children of the woman Widiana cared for, who were not at home at the time of the fire. The flames reportedly spread when safety netting covering bamboo scaffolding caught fire during routine renovation works. Over several hours, seven tower blocks at Wang Fuk Court were set ablaze. Pintoro said that he did not blame anyone for the incident and had already forgiven the building contractors who were renovating the buildings. According to the Hong Kong authorities, at least 13 people associated with the building have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. “I do not think anyone did this on purpose. Who wanted this to happen? For a huge fire to break out and hundreds of people to die? I’m sure no one,” Pintoro said. Instead, he preferred to remember his sister as the person she was rather than a victim of an unimaginable catastrophe. “She did not speak much; she was a really quiet person. If she had a problem, she would not talk about it, but she had a lot of friends.” If she could help you, she would Puthut Pintoro, brother of Widiana Having spent two decades in Hong Kong, Widiana had become a kind of unofficial adviser to domestic workers, helping them adjust to life in a new city and aiding with administrative tasks and any other issues they faced. “If she could help you, she would. She was always there. She never asked for anything in return. But if you needed anything, she would give it to you.” Following her death, Pintoro said that the family had received phone and video calls from Indonesian domestic workers all over Hong Kong, who told them how much Widiana had supported them. Final resting place Widiana did not just look out for fellow helpers. “She would call every week and ask how we were. How things were at home and if we had enough money. I would always laugh and say: ‘Of course I have enough, I have my own job.’ But she was always worried about other people and how they were doing.” Pintoro also said that his sister’s body had yet to be repatriated, which was difficult as the family is Muslim. In Indonesia, it is customary for Muslims to be buried as soon as possible, usually within a day or before the next prayer time. Following news of Widiana’s death, Pintoro said that family members, friends and neighbours had descended on the family home to pray and wait to “welcome her home”. They have been patiently waiting at the home and will not leave until Widiana’s body returns. “It is traditional for us to gather so that we can receive the body of the deceased. We want her to be buried in her home village, so that she can be close to her relatives and receive all our prayers.” He added that he had decided not to return home to Jayapura, and would now move back to Kediri to be close to his sister at her final resting place. Pintoro said that his sister’s death was particularly upsetting as they were the only two siblings, and he looked up to Widiana, who was two years older than him. “We were exceptionally close because it was just the two of us. Now I’m alone. Now, if I have a problem, I will have to face it by myself without her. I just keep crying.”

Hong Kong fire: Indonesian helper ‘was always there’ for others up to the end

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Desi Widiana, one of nine Indonesian helpers killed in the Tai Po fire, was found huddled together with her elderly ward

Desi Widiana, one of nine Indonesian helpers killed in the Tai Po fire, was found huddled together with her elderly ward