Bromo Wildfire Expands to 176 Hectares Amid Strong Winds
A forest and land fire (karhutla) in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS), East Java, has been reported to be spreading further. As of Saturday evening (8/8), the flames had not yet been fully extinguished due to strong winds at the site.
The Head of the Probolinggo Regency Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), Oemar Sjarief, revealed that the fire had spread to the Tengger Caldera Ring Road (JLKT) area, specifically towards the Jantur block. Strong gusts of wind were the main factor behind the rapid spread of the flames.
“We received information on the development of the fire in TNBTS that the flames spread to the Tengger Caldera Ring Road (JLKT) area towards the Jantur block due to quite strong winds,” said Oemar.
Given the extreme weather conditions, the joint firefighting team was instructed to prioritise personal safety. All personnel were temporarily withdrawn to a safe point around the JLKT before moving forward again when the situation allowed.
“Not long after, we received information that the wind had subsided somewhat and the team moved forward towards Jemplang via the old route. We managed to prevent the fire from crossing the old route (spider web),” he added. Officers are now on full alert to ensure the fire does not cross towards the north of Watangan.
Data from the TNBTS Central Office shows significant damage. Since it first appeared on Monday (3/8), the burned area has continued to increase drastically. Initially, the fire only scorched around 7.9 hectares of land, but the figure jumped to 44 hectares, then 51 hectares, reaching an estimated 176 hectares on Friday (7/8) evening.
Most of the area affected by the fire is within the administrative territory of Probolinggo Regency.
Responding to the increasingly worrying situation, the TNBTS Central Office has officially closed all tourist access to the Mount Bromo area. This policy took effect from 8 August 2026 at 22.00 WIB until an unspecified time.
The Head of the TNBTS Central Office, Rudijanta Tjahja Nugraha, stressed that this step was taken to facilitate the firefighting process and ensure tourist safety.
“The closure of the area was taken for the effectiveness of firefighting efforts in the field and to guarantee the security and safety of visitors,” explained Rudijanta in an official statement.
This closure covers four main entrances to TNBTS.
Until now, all joint officers remain on full alert in the field to monitor the movement of hotspots and carry out containment efforts so that the fire does not spread further to other forest areas.