Warehouse worker R Kumaran, 34, said he had seen sparks fly from the exposed cables of an electrical pole near one of the warehouses which was destroyed in the incident.

“I believe there was a short circuit. I saw with my own eyes the sparks going off, and then a loud explosion. After that, the fire broke out and spread,” he told FMT when contacted.

“I suspect that the sparks from the cables may have caused the fire that night.”

Kumaran said he immediately called the Fire and Rescue Department to report the incident. He also contacted the owner of the warehouse affected by the blaze.

It took firefighters nearly two hours to contain the blaze, which occurred at about 10.50pm on Thursday night.

Penang Fire and Rescue Department director Saadon Mokhtar reportedly said they managed to get the fire under control at 1.06am. The fire was completely put out at about 3.06am.

The four warehouses had been storing recycled items, furniture, electrical items and food items.

Saadon said he believed the fire had started at the recycled items warehouse.

Paul Yan, who runs the warehouse says he has lodged two police reports on the matter.

Yan, who is the director of Yan Brothers Industries Sdn Bhd, said he had been at home that night when he received a phone call from his younger brother telling him the warehouse had gone up in flames.

“I immediately went to the office and factory upon hearing the news. When I arrived at the premises, the whole building was on fire.

“Due to the fire and extreme heat, I could not enter the building,” he said, adding that Kumaran had informed him of his suspicions.

Yan said he had suffered about RM650,000 in losses, and that it would cost him some RM1 million to rebuild the warehouse.

In his second police report, Yan claimed the exposed wiring had since been tidied up by TNB, adding that this was crucial missing evidence which could have determined the cause of the fire.

Yan said the wires had been spotted in a site visit on Saturday afternoon together with Kumaran and members of the fire and rescue forensic team from both Penang and Putrajaya.

“A photograph taken on March 30 showed that the wires were dangling, but in another photograph taken on April 1, the cables had been tidied up,” he said.

The 41-year-old voice further dissatisfaction with Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin and Batu Maung state assemblyman Abdul Malik Abul Kassim over what he said was an unfulfilled election promise of a bridge as an emergency exit near his warehouse.

“I met up with them on Saturday and told them off. I told them of the promise they made, and their failure to fulfil it. Sim brushed me off and told me to go see Malik.

“I told Malik, and he said to give the state government some time. I asked him how many more days were needed. Five years ago, before the election, you made the promise but you failed to fulfil it.”

Yan added that there were also three fire hydrants missing from the area.

Yan said his intention in lodging the police reports was to ensure that the fire was thoroughly probed, and that he was not interested in pointing fingers.

When contacted, Saadon declined to comment on the matter which is still under investigation.

He said however that the top brass from Putrajaya would be making a site visit on Wednesday.