30 Manggala Agni Personnel Reinforce Firefighting Team at Jatiwaringin Landfill

The Ministry of Forestry has strengthened efforts to handle the fire at the Jatiwaringin Final Processing Site (TPA) in Tangerang Regency by deploying 30 Manggala Agni personnel. This support is part of cross-ministry and institutional collaboration in dealing with the ongoing blaze. Director General of Forestry Law Enforcement, Dwi Januanto Nugroho, stated that the deployment follows a request for firefighting assistance from the Ministry of Environment. He noted that the Ministry of Forestry possesses resources and experience in handling fires, including successfully extinguishing a fire at the Rawa Kucing landfill in Tangerang City in 2023. Nugroho added that this experience is crucial for applying suppression strategies to landfill fires, which differ from forest and land fires due to the presence of waste piles that generate heat and methane gas. The Manggala Agni team is conducting integrated firefighting operations alongside the Tangerang Regency Fire Department and reinforcing water bombing operations carried out by the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB). This synergy of resources is expected to accelerate the response and minimise the impact of smoke on the public. Director of Forest Fire Control, Thomas Nifinluri, explained that the 30 deployed personnel are trained and equipped for fire control. The team comprises 22 personnel from the Sulawesi Regional Forest Fire Control Centre and 8 from the Java, Bali, and Nusa Tenggara (JBN) Regional Centre. Initial steps have included field assessments, monitoring, and coordination with BNPB, the Tangerang Regency Disaster Management Agency, the local fire department, the Ministry of Environment, the military, and the police to determine operational strategies. Nifinluri outlined that the team will implement a ‘5M’ management strategy covering smoke, water, human resources, facilities and infrastructure, and logistics. The suppression process will begin with securing water sources and preparing supply lines, after which the team will apply a scraping method, gradually excavating the waste piles while spraying water onto hotspots until they are extinguished. Reports from the field indicate that the fire has affected an estimated 13 hectares, based on data from the landfill management, with thick smoke still visible, prompting continued intensive operations by all involved agencies.