BPBD Kuningan: 200 personnel still tackling Ciniru landfill fire
The Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) of Kuningan Regency, West Java, said around 200 combined personnel were still working to tackle the fire at the Ciniru final waste disposal site (TPSA) on Thursday.
Kuningan BPBD Chief Executive Indra Bayu, when contacted in Kuningan on Thursday, said the combined team had been divided into several squads to deal with fire spots spread across the northern and southern sides of the TPSA area.
“The combined team is still extinguishing fires at a number of hotspots spread across the TPSA area,” he said.
He said firefighting on Thursday was carried out from 8.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. Western Indonesia Time, followed by monitoring of the site conditions from 7 p.m.
To facilitate the firefighting effort, he said, officers used thermal drones to map hotspots and locations where flames were still emerging among the piles of waste.
“The fire handling involves the Kuningan Regency BPBD, the Environmental Agency, the fire brigade, the Indonesian National Armed Forces, the Indonesian National Police, BPBD and a number of regional agencies at the provincial and regency levels,” he said.
He said the team received support from water tank vehicles and two excavators to assist with the firefighting process and the handling of burning waste piles.
“Follow-up handling for Friday (14/8) will be determined after a briefing and evaluation by the combined team,” he said.
Based on a preliminary report from the Kuningan Regency BPBD, the burned area of the TPSA is estimated to have reached around five hectares, and there were no fatalities in the incident.
The fire at the TPSA of the Waste Management Technical Implementation Unit of the Kuningan Regency Environmental Agency in Bubulak Titisara Block, Ciniru Village, was first detected on Wednesday (12/8) at around 4 a.m. Western Indonesia Time.
At that time, officers smelled smoke and saw flames and plumes of smoke rising from the waste piles, which then spread rapidly.
Handling has been carried out in stages since Wednesday (12/8), then continued on Thursday with additional personnel, personal protective equipment and firefighting support equipment.