Ciniru Landfill Fire in Kuningan Still Not Extinguished, West Java Provincial Government Sends Aid
By the eighth day, Wednesday (19/8), the fire burning through waste piles at the Ciniru Final Disposal Site (TPA) in Ciniru Village, Jalaksana District, Kuningan Regency, West Java, had still not been fully extinguished. Combined teams continued to battle the blaze at the site, which remained shrouded in thick smoke.
According to information gathered, the joint team comprising the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), fire brigade, police, military, and other relevant agencies continued efforts to localise the fire hotspots. The main obstacles on the ground were strong gusts of wind and the large volume of highly flammable waste material, making the fire difficult to extinguish completely.
Kuningan Regent Dian Rachmat Yanuar stated that his administration was maximising all available resources to put out the fire. In addition to using water, personnel were also applying a sand-burying method.
“We continue to work to extinguish the fire here. The use of sand is considered quite effective in cutting off the oxygen supply to hotspots beneath the waste piles,” Dian said while inspecting the site on Wednesday (19/8).
To accelerate the response, the West Java Provincial Government also sent assistance. Two water tankers, each with a capacity of approximately 5,000 litres, were deployed to the Ciniru TPA area.
Dian acknowledged that the characteristics of landfill fires present a different level of difficulty compared with ordinary land fires. “This is because the material characteristics at the TPA are different; there is plastic that is highly flammable and other materials that retain heat internally,” he explained.
Nevertheless, Dian claimed that the number of active hotspots had begun to decrease compared with previous days. He expressed hope that weather conditions would be favourable so that the fire could be fully extinguished soon.
In addition to focusing on fire suppression, the Kuningan Regency Government was also attending to the health of personnel on the ground. Several ambulances remained on standby in the Ciniru TPA area.
Health workers from the Kuningan Regency Health Office routinely conducted examinations and provided treatment for firefighters exposed to thick smoke or suffering from fatigue while working in the fire zone.