Riau Regional Police Test X-Fire Method for Forest and Land Fire Suppression
The Riau Regional Police continue to seek various effective methods to tackle forest and land fires (karhutla), particularly in peatland areas. Most recently, the Riau Regional Police, alongside the Logistics Staff Team (Slog) of the National Police Headquarters, conducted a trial and research study on the use of X-Fire fire suppressant liquid in the Pelalawan Regency area.
The trial took place at a fire site in Sering Village, Pelalawan District, Pelalawan Regency, on Thursday (10/09/2026). The activity was attended by the National Police Chief’s Logistics Head, Inspector General Suwondo Nainggolan, and the Riau Regional Police Chief, Inspector General Herry Heryawan, along with their delegation.
The Head of the Human Resources Bureau of the Riau Regional Police, Commissioner Boy Jeckson Situmorang, explained that X-Fire liquid has previously proven effective in extinguishing forest and land fires in the peatlands of South Sumatra and Kalimantan. The presence of the team from the National Police Headquarters this time aims to test and research the extent of the liquid’s effectiveness when applied to the specific characteristics of peatland in Riau Province.
“This assessment must be conducted because handling methods can differ in each region, including for the characteristics of the peatland found in Pelalawan Regency and Riau in general,” Commissioner Boy Jeckson told reporters at the site.
For information, X-Fire is an innovative specialised fire suppressant developed by the National Police to accelerate the suppression of forest and land fires, particularly in peatland areas. X-Fire works by cutting off oxygen by forming a thick layer of foam that covers the burning area to prevent oxygen from easily entering.
Based on initial field testing, the use of X-Fire liquid showed a quite positive response in suppressing embers within the peat layers. However, the police, along with the research team, will continue to monitor developments at the trial site over the next one to two days.
This monitoring step is being undertaken to ensure that the liquid is truly capable of penetrating beneath the peat surface and completely eliminating fire hotspots (zero hotspot).
“We have proven that the use of this liquid is quite effective. However, we will wait one to two days to see if this liquid truly extinguishes the fire to zero per cent at the surface level of the peatland,” he explained.
Commissioner Boy Jeckson hopes that the fire suppression method using X-Fire liquid can serve as a proper formulation reference for handling forest and land fires in Riau Province in the future.
If the research results prove the reliability of the liquid, this method will be integrated into the Riau Regional Police’s long-term mitigation strategy to face the threat of forest and land fires in the coming years.
“Hopefully, this method will be useful and can be applied in Riau Province as part of our mitigation steps for future years. This is a manifestation of the National Police’s service to the nation,” he added.
The suppression efforts using X-Fire liquid were carried out by joint personnel from the Riau Regional Police, TNI (Indonesian National Armed Forces), BPBD (Regional Disaster Management Agency), Manggala Agni, and the Community Fire Care Volunteers (MPA), with assistance from students of the National Police Senior Leadership Training (Sespimti) who are part of the Education Task Force.
The Sespimti students also visited the site to conduct research and provide technical recommendations for future prevention and mitigation efforts regarding forest and land fires.
“This is a collaborative step from the academic side of the Education Task Force and the restoration initiative for the planting of one million trees in former fire-affected lands, which will be led by the Riau Regional Police Chief,” he concluded.