Officers move quickly to control Bromo forest and land fire in Seruni Block
Probolinggo, East Java - Joint officers moved quickly to extinguish a forest and land fire on Mount Bromo, with hotspots located in Seruni Block, Ngadisari Village, Probolinggo Regency, East Java.
“This morning we received information that a fire had broken out on the eastern slope of the Bromo Glass Bridge, so all joint officers moved to control the hotspots there,” said Oemar Sjarief, Head of the Probolinggo Regency Regional Disaster Management Agency, when contacted in Probolinggo on Thursday.
According to him, extinguishing efforts were not easy because the terrain was steep and rugged, and dry shrub and grass vegetation accelerated the spread of the fire, forcing officers to work extra hard battling the flames to prevent them from spreading further towards the glass bridge and the homestay area.
Using manual equipment, a number of joint officers attempted to localise two hotspots that were moving quickly and threatening the iconic Bromo Glass Bridge tourist attraction in Seruni Block, Cemoro Lawang Hamlet, Ngadisari Village, Sukapura District.
Meanwhile, Probolinggo Police Chief AKBP Asmida Rizki Siregar said that from field observations there were two hotspots heading towards the Glass Bridge area in Ngadisari Village, so the joint team took swift action to prevent the fire from spreading.
He urged the public and tourists to play an active role in raising collective awareness to prevent fires, particularly in areas prone to forest and land fires.
“If you find any hotspots or conditions that could potentially cause a fire, residents should immediately report them to officers so they can be dealt with quickly,” he said.
As of now, forest and land fire handling is still ongoing, prioritising the safety of personnel and the public as well as maximum efforts to control the spread of hotspots.
Information from the Probolinggo BPBD stated that the hotspots were successfully extinguished on Thursday evening, but officers were still conducting damping down operations in the burned area to ensure there were no embers that could trigger a recurrence of the fire.
Previously, the forest and land fire handling operation on Mount Bromo in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park area was declared complete because the fire had been extinguished and the forest and land fire handling post was officially closed on Tuesday (18/8).
Forest and land fire handling in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park area proceeded safely, smoothly, and under control thanks to cross-sectoral cooperation and coordination with various parties.