Three TNI Battalions Deployed to West Kalimantan to Control Fire Hotspots
President Prabowo Subianto has instructed a significant reinforcement of personnel and aerial assets to handle forest and land fires in West Kalimantan. The strategic move came after the President led a brief coordination meeting upon arrival at Supadio Air Force Base on Saturday (22/8).
Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya revealed that the government is deploying three TNI battalions, or approximately 1,500 additional personnel from outside Kalimantan. The dispatch of these personnel is scheduled to take place from Saturday until Sunday morning to strengthen firefighting efforts at hotspots that are still burning.
‘A number of handling measures have been prepared, namely the addition of three TNI battalions or around 1,500 personnel from outside Kalimantan who will be brought in from today until Sunday morning,’ Teddy said in a written statement on Saturday (22/8).
In addition to ground forces, the government is also adding six large-capacity helicopters for water bombing operations. This additional aerial fleet is scheduled to arrive on Saturday afternoon to accelerate aerial firefighting in areas that are difficult to reach by land.
The government is also intensifying Weather Modification Operations to induce artificial rain in several affected areas in West Kalimantan. The implementation of these operations will be adjusted based on analysis of rain cloud potential in the field to support the effectiveness of total extinguishing efforts.
After leading the meeting, President Prabowo immediately inspected the fire location in Limbung Village, Sungai Raya District, Kubu Raya Regency. The field visit aimed to ensure that all handling instructions were being carried out quickly and in a coordinated manner at the ground level.
Teddy emphasised that accelerating the handling is a government priority to control the spread of forest and land fires so that they do not expand and to minimise the impact of haze on surrounding communities.