Fire hotspots on Mount Bromo in Probolinggo extinguished, says disaster agency
Probolinggo, East Java (ANTARA) - The Head of the Probolinggo Regency Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD), Oemar Sjarief, stated that the forest and land fire (karhutla) hotspots in the Mount Bromo area located in Probolinggo Regency, East Java, had been extinguished as of Wednesday.
Two hotspots were still being tackled until Tuesday (11/8), namely at P30 in Probolinggo and Dingklik in Pasuruan, as their locations were on cliffs that were difficult to reach manually. Officers used the water bombing method by deploying three helicopters.
“Alhamdulillah, the information we received is that in the P30 area, Sumber District, Probolinggo Regency, no hotspots are visible, and the one still burning is in the Dingklik area, Tosari District, Pasuruan Regency,” said Oemar in Probolinggo.
According to him, out of a total of 34 previous hotspots, there is still one hotspot in the Dingklik area that has not been extinguished, and all personnel have been deployed to tackle the forest and land fires in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS) area in Pasuruan Regency.
“All BPBD resources have been deployed, including fire engines from Surabaya, Malang, Nganjuk, Jombang, Pasuruan Regency/City, Mojokerto, and Probolinggo, to focus on Pasuruan,” he said.
Previously, the Head of the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), Lieutenant General TNI Suharyanto, targeted the extinguishing of the Mount Bromo forest and land fires to be completed by Friday (14/8), as three helicopters were deployed to reach hotspots that were difficult to control from the ground.
“The hotspots in the P30 area, Sumber District, Probolinggo Regency, and the Dingklik area in Tosari District, Pasuruan Regency, are observed to have terrain conditions consisting of cliffs and are difficult to reach, making manual extinguishing face obstacles,” he said.
He explained that the government is targeting the hotspots in the TNBTS area to be resolved as soon as possible because a number of helicopters used in the extinguishing operation will be diverted to assist in handling fires in other locations.
“The total area affected by the Bromo forest and land fires as of Tuesday (11/8) reached approximately 889 hectares. The burned area is spread across four regions, namely Probolinggo, Lumajang, Malang, and Pasuruan Regencies,” he said.
The joint team continues to work hard to extinguish the forest and land fires in the TNBTS area, and it is hoped that no new hotspots will emerge. The public is also urged not to carry out activities that could trigger potential fires.