Forestry Minister says water bombing intensified to extinguish fire on Mount Bromo slopes

Malang, East Java - Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni stated that water bombing helicopters are being optimised to extinguish fires on Mount Bromo, East Java, especially in slope areas that cannot be accessed by joint teams via land routes.

“Three helicopters have been operating for the past two days. We ask for prayers that the weather remains favourable so the fire can be extinguished, especially on slopes that ground forces cannot reach,” said Minister Raja Juli at Mount Bromo on Sunday.

He noted that the water bombing was targeted to be carried out 30 times today and has already been conducted 17 times. However, he added that the smoothness of aerial firefighting depends on weather conditions, particularly wind gusts, which can pose obstacles to the fire suppression process.

Therefore, he requested continued support and prayers from the public so that efforts to extinguish the fire in the Mount Bromo area can proceed optimally. Raja Juli added that firefighting efforts are also being carried out by the joint team on the ground.

In addition, officers in the field have created a six-kilometre firebreak to anticipate the spread of hotspots. “The incident yesterday (the spread of the fire at Bromo) was due to the steep slope and very high wind gusts, which caused the fire to jump,” he said.

He added that the acceleration of fire suppression has been followed up by establishing an incident commander. Through this step, handling at the fire location will be more structured, thereby influencing operations on the ground. “We have just held a meeting to establish incident commanders, so all needs and challenges can be coordinated, making the firefighting effort more effective,” he said.