According to a government spokeswoman and media sources, a fire ripped through an overcrowded jail block in Indonesia's Banten province early Wednesday (Sept 8), killing at least 40 people and wounding scores more.

The fire at Tangerang Prison Block C, which started around 1 to 2 a.m., had been put out. However, authorities were still evacuating the institution, according to Rika Aprianti, a spokesperson for the law and human rights ministry's prison department.

"The cause is under investigation," she stated.

According to her, the block contained inmates imprisoned for drug-related offenses and had a capacity of 122 persons.

She wouldn't specify how many people were in the jail when the fire started, but she did confirm that it was overcrowded.

According to government records, as of September, the jail in Tangerang, an industrial and manufacturing area outside Jakarta, housed more than 2,000 detainees, well beyond its 600-person capacity.

Firefighters trying to put out massive flames from the top of a structure were shown on Kompas TV. According to the broadcaster, 41 people perished, and 8 were critically injured.

"The initial suspicion is this was because of an electrical short circuit," police spokesperson Yusri Yunus told Metro TV, citing a police report that said 73 persons were also injured lightly.