Jatiwaringin Landfill Fire: 49% of Area Extinguished on Day 9

The firefighting operation at the Jatiwaringin Final Disposal Site (TPA) in Tangerang Regency, Banten, has entered its ninth day, with 49 percent of the affected area now successfully extinguished. “This collaboration from all agencies shows progress. We have currently reached 49 percent and remain focused on cooling operations,” said Brigadier General TNI Djohan Darmawan, Director of Victim and Refugee Handling Facilitation at the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), on Wednesday (8/7/2026). The 49 percent figure is based on operations conducted on Tuesday (7/7). Combined tactical measures continue to be deployed to localise and extinguish hotspots via both ground and aerial operations. Joint personnel from BNPB, relevant ministries, local government, the military and police, as well as private entities, are working together to fight the fire. To overcome difficult terrain and hotspots unreachable by ground hoses, BNPB has deployed helicopters to reinforce the operation from the air. “We are overcoming the obstacles by bringing in four water-bombing helicopters to tackle sectors that cannot be reached by fire engines. So, we douse them from the air,” Djohan explained. On the ground, teams have also created access roads on the north and south sides to facilitate the movement of fire trucks. Additionally, personnel are managing elevated areas by constructing water retention ponds, with water channelled through six to eight lanes of fire hoses, including injecting special chemical liquids to control the embers. This two-pronged offensive strategy is considered highly effective for massively encircling the hotspots. Djohan outlined that synchronisation between ground and air teams is the key to cooling the area. “We advance from below, and from above we also douse it to cool and extinguish the fire,” he stated. Thanks to this measured coordination, the spread of fire on the surface of the Jatiwaringin TPA has been gradually suppressed. However, the main challenge on the ninth day has shifted to tackling the thick smoke billowing from beneath the mountain of waste. Based on geothermal detection tools, the material inside the landfill still retains high heat potential and is producing gas. “Currently, the surface fire is not visible, but smoke is emerging from inside the waste pile. It is possible that there is a heat source inside because it contains gas,” Djohan added. This situation requires the joint team to remain on standby, constantly spraying water into the inner zones of the waste pile. Regarding a long-term solution through Weather Modification Operations (OMC), BNPB has been coordinating regularly with the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) since the incident began. However, artificial rain engineering cannot yet be executed because the growth of potential clouds over the TPA Jatiwaringin complex and its surroundings is still monitored as very minimal. Nevertheless, BNPB and BMKG continue to monitor atmospheric dynamics and have confirmed they will immediately apply for cloud seeding permits once the meteorological conditions in the region become suitable.