Perhutani: Fire in Mount Butak area successfully extinguished
Perum Perhutani has announced that the forest fire occurring in the Mount Butak area, East Java, was successfully extinguished by joint task forces on Monday at approximately 16:00 WIB.
“The fire that occurred has been extinguished, and as of 16:00 WIB, it is out,” said Kelik Djatmiko, Administrator of the Perhutani Malang Forest Management Unit (KPH), when contacted via telephone from Malang, East Java.
Kelik stated that field officers are currently conducting monitoring and sweeping the affected areas to ensure that no new hotspots or flames emerge. He noted that the fire location was situated in Plot 100 of the South Pujon Forest Management Resort (RPH).
While the cause of the fire cannot yet be confirmed as priority was given to the firefighting process, Kelik assured that the incident was not triggered by hiking activities, as the fire point was located far from the trekking trails.
“The fire point was between Post 3 and Post 4, approximately one kilometre west of the hiking trail. Therefore, it was not on the trail, but still far away,” he said.
Perum Perhutani stated that the area in Mount Butak affected by the fire is classified as protected forest, with the burnt objects consisting of shrubs and growing trees. Based on preliminary calculations, the area of land in Mount Butak affected by the fire is approximately 15 hectares.
A policy to close access to hiking has been implemented until the situation in the area is officially declared safe, meaning officers have found no presence of hotspots or flames that could trigger further fires.
“It is not an evacuation, but we are advising (hikers) to descend immediately and leave the summit; so far, the situation is conducive. Today, there were 182 hikers, almost all of whom have descended, while some are still on their way,” he added.
Perhutani ensures that they will continue to conduct regular monitoring to track the latest developments regarding the hikers and the situation at the fire site.