Forest and Land Fires in West Java Spread to 19 Regencies and Cities, Sumedang Worst Affected

Forest and land fires (karhutla) in West Java are reported to be spreading. To date, 19 of the 27 regencies and cities in West Java have been affected by the fires. Spokesperson for the West Java Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), Hadi Rahmat, said that the intensity of fires has increased significantly amid dry weather conditions. Based on the latest data, Sumedang Regency has recorded the highest number of incidents. “The number of karhutla incidents has reached 111 events. The total area of land and forest burned has reached 168 hectares,” Hadi Rahmat said in a statement on Wednesday (19/8/2026). BPBD data shows a fairly even distribution of fires across more than a dozen areas. Sumedang Regency leads with a total of 19 fire incidents. Hadi explained that besides natural factors such as extremely dry land conditions due to the dry season, human activity remains the main trigger for fires. Trivial activities such as burning rubbish or carelessly discarding cigarette butts in open areas often lead to large fires. In addition to forest areas, BPBD also highlighted the vulnerability of dry land fires along motorway verges. These locations are considered at risk due to high heat exposure and the abundance of flammable materials such as dry grass. To date, joint teams in various regions remain on standby to carry out firefighting and mitigation efforts to prevent flames from spreading to residential areas.