BMKG places one district in NTB on drought alert status

The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has designated Bima Regency as the sole area in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) under an early warning at the meteorological drought alert level, amid the strengthening El Niño phenomenon.

BMKG forecaster at the NTB Climatology Station, Suci Agustiarini, stated that the Donggo subdistrict in Bima Regency has recorded the longest consecutive period without rain, reaching 40 days.

BMKG has declared that all regions across West Nusa Tenggara have now entered the dry season. The public is therefore urged to anticipate potential clean water crises by using water sparingly and efficiently.

Residents are also asked to remain vigilant against the potential for forest, land and residential fires by refraining from burning rubbish carelessly or leaving any source of fire unattended.

In addition to the one area on meteorological drought alert status, BMKG has also placed several areas under a drought watch category, including the subdistricts of Belo, Bolo, Langgudu, Palibelo, and Parado in Bima Regency.

A similar status has been applied to the subdistricts of Kempo and Manggalewa in Dompu Regency, as well as Empang, Lape, and Plampang in Sumbawa Regency.

Fellow BMKG forecaster at the NTB Climatology Station, Cakra Mahasurya, added that the latest monitoring results for the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) in the last ten-day period showed the IOD was in a negative category with an index of -0.926, and is predicted to enter a positive condition starting in July 2026.

The Nino3.4 sea surface temperature anomaly indicates the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is in a weak category with an index of +1.04. El Niño conditions are predicted to develop into a moderate event starting in June 2026.

During the second ten-day period of June 2026, covering 11-20 June, BMKG forecasts the probability of rainfall with an intensity of more than 20 millimetres per period to be between 10 and 30 percent.

Areas that could potentially receive light rain include North Lombok Regency, parts of Central Lombok Regency, small portions of West Sumbawa Regency, small portions of Sumbawa Regency, and parts of Bima and Dompu Regencies.

“All regions in NTB are currently experiencing the dry season, which is being reinforced by the El Niño phenomenon,” concluded Cakra.