Manggala Agni extinguishes 13.5-hectare forest fire in Indragiri Hilir, Riau
Pekanbaru — The Manggala Agni team from Regional Operation VII Rengat extinguished a forest and land fire (karhutla) covering approximately 13.5 hectares in Tanjung Pidada Village, Tempuling District, Indragiri Hilir Regency, Riau Province.
Muhammad Ilham Sodik, Head of Regional Operation VII Rengat, said in a statement received in Pekanbaru on Tuesday that the fire occurred in a community-owned plantation area dominated by coconut plants, areca nuts, and scrubland. The burnt land is classified as other use area (APL) with peatland soil type.
He explained that the extinguishing process involved multiple parties, including the Manggala Agni team from Rengat Regional Operations, TNI/Police personnel, the Indragiri Hilir Regency Disaster Mitigation Agency, and the Fire-Conscious Community (MPA) of Tanjung Pidada Village.
Water for extinguishing was sourced from ditches or canals near the location. However, the team faced challenges in the field due to difficult access to the fire point and water sources located 300 to 400 metres from the incident location.
Despite these obstacles, extinguishing efforts succeeded and the team is currently conducting follow-up activities including cooling and mopping up to ensure no remaining embers could ignite the fire again.
Meanwhile, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency’s Pekanbaru Station recorded 39 hotspots detected in Riau Province based on satellite monitoring on Tuesday afternoon (10 March). BMKG Pekanbaru Station forecaster Alfa Nataris noted that the hotspots were scattered across several regencies and cities in Riau, with the largest concentration of 13 in Pelalawan Regency.
Hotspots were also detected in Bengkalis Regency with 10 points and Indragiri Hilir Regency with seven points. Dumai City recorded three hotspots, followed by two points each in Siak Regency and Indragiri Hulu Regency. One hotspot was also monitored in each of Kampar Regency and Kuantan Singingi Regency.