Bangka Regency Battles Forest Fires with Manual Methods Amid Equipment Shortages

The Bangka Regency government is being forced to rely on manual firefighting methods to tackle forest and land fires (karhutla) due to a severe shortage of operational vehicles. Plt Head of the Bangka Regency Satpol PP, Achmad Suherman, stated that of the four fire trucks owned by the agency, only two have been repaired and are now operational. “Today, two of our vehicles have been repaired and can be used to extinguish forest and land fires,” Suherman said on Friday (14/8). He noted that even the two repaired units cannot operate at maximum capacity because of their old age. “Our four fire trucks are old, so even after repairs, they are still not optimal,” he explained. Consequently, with high daily fire occurrences, manual firefighting remains the primary option. “Our personnel in the field always maximise manual firefighting, whether using hand sprayers or tree branches,” he added. Suherman reported that there have been 200 fire hotspots across several sub-districts in Bangka, with the total burned area exceeding 300 hectares. “The total burned land has reached 300 hectares, and this will continue to increase because there are 4 to 10 fire incidents every day,” he said. Separately, Bangka Regent Fery Insani urged residents to remain vigilant against forest and land fires, which have intensified during the dry season, with over 50 hectares burned in July 2026. To prevent and tackle the fires, the Bangka Regency Government has formed a special task force, as fires are often caused by individuals carelessly discarding cigarette butts or clearing land by burning.