Fires level warungs at Balangan
On Monday night a fire tore through beachfront warungs at Balangan beach in Bali. Locals fought the blaze with buckets and hoses until a fire brigade arrived and contained the damage. In total five warungs were razed, no injuries were reported.
It's not yet known how the fire started though one source said it was the result of an electrical fault in one of the warungs.
Balangan is the last untouched beach on the Bukit peninsula and has been the wave of choice for those escaping the crowds at other Bukit reefs. In recent years it's also become popular with the Russian surfing community.
Last year a rumour spread that the Balangan warungs would be torn down to make way for a new development. Balangan is squeezed between the resort devlelopment of Dreamland to the south and the growing suburbia of Jimbaran to the north.
In November Swellnet reported on the imminent plan to remove the warungs at Uluwatu, then replace them with modern facilities plus a new development.
Comments
Theres already a Belangan Hotel/Resort glossy brochure doing the rounds. Where there's smoke there's fire.....
Exactly my thought when i read the headline, sounds like another nail in the Bali coffin.
Agree lucky i surfed it when there was no warungs on the beach and only me four friends and a cow on the headland with no one out surfing. Oh the memories when surfing was like that. Now wait a villa or two and a sprawling hotel or two. Artical said favouite spot for the russcies what a laugh balian now here eh wonder who paid to light the fires. If the local govenor in bali could see the real picture they would leave only palm trees and bush on the beach. No vision here another beach in bali about to be destroyed for what money.
Yep a few years ago the Russkies had a contest in two foot on the point complete with Smirnoff beach flags and Acadaca playing flat out on the beach. They looked the part just couldn't surf. Very amusing. I love the spot as it is the last of the true Bukit surf beaches with its shanty town of (now) burn't down Warungs. Bummer.
Gosh, I feel for those Indonesians who have lost their decent livelihood in that fire!
I was in Balangan in October. Yeah it is the last remaining "old" Bali. But the area is being cleared in mass as loads of land is for sale. An indonesian surfer was very sad to tell me that Balangan is becoming like the rest of the bukit, the sellers of the land are aiming for villa and high density resort developers. It is sad but that is life I suppose and hopefully the large scale development that is imminent in Balangan will bring employment and improved life to more of the Indonesians.
While I know it seems suss (and not without reason based on other prior events in Bali), but sometimes these things are accidents. The wife and I were at the warung just south of Kommune at Keramas two years ago when the side wall in the cooking area went up. The young adults looking after the warung had gone off to cook our tucker, came back upstairs, got distracted, and left the fire unattended. Luckily the place wasn't full, with only the wife and I hanging at the time . Young adults were in a spin shitting themselves leaving Ibu and I to race down to the waters edge to get buckets of sea water to chuck on the wall. Luckily got under control fairly quickly and only a couple of woven palm panels destroyed.
Shame though, Balangan has always been a favourite but haven't been back in years as been looking for less crowded surf in other less known parts (that day at Keramas being an exception in avoiding known area's).
And before you start Zen, no sarongs that day.
I can't believe you didn't bust out No. 65 in '101 uses for a Sarong'.
That is 'a Sarong soaked in water makes for an excellent substitute for a fire blanket when attempting to put out cooking oil fires'.
Geez brother, quick on the reply. Thinking you know more about sarongs than I do. Tie that with your Thailand Banchong trip and your nail-polish tip from a closet tranvestite that "you know" (in the cracks on new surfboard thread) and I'm starting to worry about you. Don't worry though, you're still my brother and I'll support you no matter what lifestyle you choose.
Thanks sweetie:)
No worries brother, or is that sister??? :)
Burgsurfer would have been better to leave warungs on the beach rather than looking at ugly highrise concrete structures. Just hope they contain all their shit in the resorts. And yes job creation of course but minimum wages dont forget. If you can find an uncrowded wave somewhere enjoy while you can cause bet your balls next week or month next year someone will want to make money out of it and another iydillic spot lost. Thats what surfings become i guess.