‘Tapped my card and then we ran’: Bali tourist claims restaurant staff asked him to settle bill before fleeing fire
Exclusive: A model and holidaymaker who was dining at a Bali restaurant when it erupted into flames alleges staff asked his table to settle the bill before making their escape.
Sebastian Amundsen, 22, was enjoying dinner with friends at Chez Gado Gado in Seminyak on the Indonesian island on August 30 when the venue was “suddenly” engulfed by flames.
Sebastian Amundsen is on holiday with friends in Bali and was in Chez Gado Gado when the fire erupted. Sebastian Amundsen
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“We had simply gone out for dinner. Everything was completely normal… within moments the atmosphere changed from a normal evening into complete panic,” Amundsen told nine.com.au.
“Fire [embers] were raining down from the roof... everyone was so scared.”
Hundreds of diners, including many Australians, scrambled to get out the door.
Amundsen – who was born in Norway and has lived in Australia previously – had been dining downstairs at the multi-storey restaurant.
The group tried to join the mass exodus.
But he claimed their getaway was almost thwarted by an overzealous staff member who wanted them to pay the 5483000rp (approx $430) tab first.
Amundsen captured this footage after he left the restaurant. Sebastian Amundsen
“What made it even more frightening was that, while we were trying to leave, we were initially told by the restaurant that we needed to settle our bill before going,” Amundsen claimed.
“With a fire spreading and everyone panicking, it felt surreal.
“At that point all we wanted was to get outside and know that we were safe.”
He told the waiter he had no cash and claimed he was forced to wait as an Eftpos terminal was brought over to him so he could use Apple Pay.
Amundsen’s Apple Pay receipt shows he paid at 7.29pm, the same time the fire was said to have broken out. Sebastian Amundsen
Chez Gado Gado restaurant in Seminyak has been popular with tourists for decades. 9News
“I didn’t even see what the bill was... I just tapped my card and then we ran out,” he added.
“I am super angry we had to pay first.”
An Apple Pay receipt shows Amundsen paid the bill at 7.29pm.
Indonesian authorities say this is around the time the fire is believed to have broken out.
Amundsen said he was one of the last customers to leave the venue as the fire grew bigger.
By the team he was safely outside, the entire roof was ablaze.
“If we stayed any longer we could have died,” he added.
“I saw the aftermath of the fire the next day... it was in ruins.”
Amundsen said he was trying to escape the path of the flames when a staff member at the venue asked him to pay first. Sebastian Amundsen
One staff member suffered burns to her hand and it is believed an Australian teenager was taken to hospital with burns following the incident.
Amundsen escaped without injury but said he was “shaken” by the ordeal.
“Watching the footage afterwards feels very different from being there, you can see the flames, but it is difficult to capture how frightening and chaotic it felt in the moment,” he said.
The inferno is believed to have been sparked by a hydrogen-filled balloon, which ignited during a birthday celebration just before 7.30pm local time (9.30pm AEST).
Flames tore into the restaurant’s thatched roof and within hours, it was reduced to a charred shell.
The famous Bali venue remains closed as police investigate the fire.
Nine.com.au has contacted Chez Gado Gado for comment.
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