Forest and Land Fires Spread Across Riau, Weather Modification Operations Underway

Forest and land fires (karhutla) have spread to four locations in Riau province, impacting the regencies of Pelalawan and Indragiri Hulu (Inhu).

Ferdian Krisnanto, Head of the Forest Fire Control Brigade (Dalkarhut) for Sumatra, confirmed that firefighting operations are currently underway. Teams from Manggala Agni have been deployed to two sites in Pelalawan, specifically in Kerumutan village and Mak Teduh village, as well as two sites in Indragiri Hulu, namely Paya Rumbai village in Siberida district and Sungai Guntung Hilir village in Rengat district.

In addition to ground firefighting efforts, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has commenced Weather Modification Operations (OMC) in the province. The cloud seeding operations are a preventive measure aimed at inducing rain to help extinguish the fires and mitigate the impact of the ongoing dry conditions.