Fire Erupts at Bukit Sempana Tourist Site at the Foot of Mount Rinjani

The natural tourist area of Bukit Sempana in Sembalun Bumbung Village, East Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara Province, located at the foot of Mount Rinjani, has been engulfed by fire. The blaze was reported in the late afternoon, with the fire front steadily expanding as night fell, according to Lalu Iskandar, Head of the East Rinjani Security Section, speaking from East Lombok on Tuesday. He stated that the incident has forced a temporary suspension of all climbing activities and officers have been deployed to the fire location to evacuate tourists who were on trekking expeditions. “We are taking swift rescue measures to anticipate any casualties resulting from the land fire in the area,” he said. Authorities continue to monitor the situation from below while ensuring the safety of the remaining visitors who are still on the hill. “For now, we are still focusing on evacuating dozens of visitors who were camping at Bukit Sempana,” he added. He noted that the cause of the land fire could not yet be determined as the team had been unable to reach the seat of the blaze due to the excessively high-risk terrain at night. “We have not yet reached that point, so we cannot yet confirm the origin of the fire, let alone the total area burned. Our focus tonight is securing those on the hill; fire suppression efforts will commence tomorrow morning,” he said. Meanwhile, Sembalun Police Chief Iptu Lalu Subadri confirmed the fire incident and the security operation at one of the favourite destinations for hikers. “The forest and land fire location is approximately 500 metres from the camping ground frequently visited by climbers,” he said. He explained that a joint team of officers and community members is currently concentrating on rescuing tourists trapped near the fire site. “Officers are evacuating 25 visitors from Bukit Sempana to Post 1 to ensure their safety and prevent them from being affected by the fire,” he stated.