Huge fire engulfs government building in Jakarta, Indonesia

Huge fire engulfs government building in Jakarta, Indonesia

Fire ripped through the Attorney General's Office in Jakarta, Indonesia, this evening (August 22).

Flames were first seen on the sixth floor of the government building but they spread rapidly across several floors.

Footage shows how the inferno had engulfed large parts of the prestigious building on Jalan Sultan Hasanudin Dalam by 10pm local time.

The blaze was still raging after midnight with more than 120 firefighters battling to bring it under control at the Attorney General's Office (AGO).

"I happened to be on a bus, traffic at the location was very jammed.

It turned out that the AGO was on fire," said Anisa Septiawati, one of the eyewitnesses.

"At first it was like smoke from burning garbage.

But in under two minutes, the fire grew rapidly," added Anisa.

Officials said that 23 fire engines were deployed with a total of 120 firefighters.

Head of the Jakarta Fire and Rescue Service, Satriadi Gunawan, said he received the fire report at 7.15 pm.

"We are trying to minimize the fire so that it does not spread to other parts of the building," said Satriadi.

Satriadi said initial information suggests the fire originated from the 6th floor and spread to the 3rd floor.

It is not yet known the number of losses and the causes of this fire.

Attorney General's Office spokesman Hari Setiyono said the office of the assistant attorney general for intelligence and the human resources department had experienced the majority of the damage from the blaze.

"We have a backup for data and documents on employment," Hari