Prabowo commends teams battling forest and land fires
President Prabowo Subianto has expressed appreciation for all personnel working day and night to handle forest and land fires (karhutla) in several regions of Kalimantan.
Minister of State Secretary (Mensesneg) Prasetyo Hadi, in a statement cited in Jakarta on Saturday, said the appreciation was conveyed by the President while chairing a coordination meeting on karhutla handling in Central Kalimantan.
“He also expressed gratitude to all ranks who have worked extraordinarily hard, day and night, battling to extinguish the fires,” said Prasetyo.
Prasetyo noted that personnel involved in handling the karhutla come from various elements, ranging from the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), the National Police (Polri), the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), to volunteers.
In addition, Manggala Agni and the Ministry of Forestry are also involved in efforts to extinguish fires occurring in several regions of Kalimantan.
“From the TNI, Polri, BNPB, as well as BMKG, and many volunteers are also involved. He conveyed his highest appreciation and respect to all who have worked hard to extinguish these forest and land fires,” said Prasetyo.
President Prabowo had previously reviewed karhutla handling in West Kalimantan before continuing his visit to Central Kalimantan to directly monitor fire management efforts.
During the coordination meeting, the President received reports on the progress of karhutla handling and discussed with relevant officials the needs still required on the ground.
Prasetyo said the President subsequently decided to add a number of equipment and personnel to strengthen firefighting operations, including helicopters for water bombing, water pumps, borehole pumps, tanker trucks, fire engines, and additional personnel.
The government has also asked provincial governments and all ranks to ensure that communities affected by the forest and land fires receive the best possible assistance.