FIREFIGHTERS CONTINUE BATTLING BLAZE
Despite improving conditions, firefighters remain on the ground.
Berton from BNPB said 51,057 people had been deployed across Central Kalimantan, West Kalimantan, South Sumatra and South Kalimantan. At one point, more than 71,000 people were involved.
Meanwhile, around 1,140ha remained under firefighting operations in Central Kalimantan, with 391ha in West Kalimantan, 35ha in South Kalimantan and 23ha in South Sumatra.
Suwarto, a firefighter who has spent 51 days battling fires in Padang Sugihan, a wildlife sanctuary in South Sumatra, said he has only experienced light drizzles so far.
In his 20 years on the job, he has never seen fires this severe, outpacing even the 2015 blazes, long regarded as Indonesia’s worst in two decades. He pointed to intense heat, strong winds, and drying water sources as key drivers.
“The heat is intense, so extreme that it triggered recurring fires, which in turn further ignited combustible material,” he told CNA.
“Water sources dried up, and the fires spread across a vast area of a protected forest zone, where safeguarding the food supply for elephants is critical.”
BNPB spokesperson Berton said that rainfall alone would not necessarily extinguish underground peat fires.
“If it rains only once or twice, there is still potential for fires because embers may remain underneath,” he said.
He added that firefighters would have to thoroughly saturate peatlands with water to prevent fires from reigniting.