Perhutani Confirms Fire at Mount Butak Fully Extinguished

Malang, East Java - Perum Perhutani has ensured that the fire incident in the Mount Butak area has been fully extinguished by joint officers.

“The fire was extinguished two days ago, but new flames appeared today; however, colleagues in the joint field team immediately carried out manual firefighting,” said Kelik Djatmiko, Administrator of Perhutani KPH Malang, when contacted via telephone from Malang City, East Java, on Tuesday.

He explained that the fire in the two areas was triggered by remaining embers carried by the wind, which caused the flames to flare up again.

Overall, the agency stated that the total area affected by the fire in the Mount Butak region is estimated to reach 1,530 hectares, covering Mount Kawinajang, Mount Malang, Mount Gentong, and Batu Tulis.

“This includes areas within the Malang Regency,” he added.

Kelik reaffirmed that all emerging hotspots have been completely extinguished through a series of firefighting operations by the joint team.

Nevertheless, he continued, the joint team remains on standby, conducting monitoring activities across every affected area.

Furthermore, cooling efforts in the fire-affected areas are still being carried out via aerial operations using water bombing helicopters.

These efforts aim to minimise the potential for new hotspots and prevent the fire from re-igniting. “There is still a potential for flames to reappear, particularly from residual embers burning trees and spreading to other areas,” he said.

Regarding the investigation to determine the exact cause of the fire, he stated that this step is not yet the primary focus, as Perhutani KPH and all parties involved in the Mount Butak fire response are still concentrating on preventing a recurrence of the incident.

“Regarding the cause of the fire, we have not moved in that direction yet, while we continue to communicate with the relevant parties,” he said.