Trapped by Peatland Fires in Ketapang: UI Students Nearly Unable to Return

The fire arrived faster than expected. The smoke grew thicker, while the exit routes from the peatland forests of Sungai Besar Village, Ketapang, West Kalimantan, became increasingly difficult to traverse.

On 8 August 2026, two students from the University of Indonesia (UI) participating in the Community Service Programme (K2N), Nnover Purba from the Geography Study Programme and Intisari from Economic Sciences, experienced the situation firsthand. They were scheduled to assist in forest and land fire patrols alongside The Power of Mama (TPOM), a group of female volunteers active in monitoring land conditions in Ketapang.

However, field conditions changed rapidly. From a post in the Sungai Besar peatland area, both students witnessed fire hotspots emerging in several locations, forcing the planned patrol to be halted early.

As they attempted to leave the forest area to return, the roads that were previously passable began to be obscured by smoke and cut off by flames. They attempted to exit four or five times, but each time the journey had to be aborted, forcing them back to the post.

During the situation, Nnover and Intisari spoke for approximately 30 minutes with firefighters and the Village Forest Management Agency (LPHD), who had been struggling to extinguish the flames for several days. Another issue emerged: the water sources from nearby ditches, which have long been relied upon for firefighting, began to significantly diminish.

It was not until late afternoon that they finally managed to break through the encirclement of smoke and leave the forest area.

For Nnover, the experience made the issue of forest and land fires—which he had previously studied only through data and maps—feel far more real. “We learn from data and maps that forest fires are a major problem, but it was only when trapped amidst the smoke that I realised this is not just about numbers; it is about the people who have to live in the midst of it every year,” he told Republika.co.id on Friday (4/9/2026).

The incident occurred after approximately 10 days of the UI K2N students rotating in the field to assist TPOM. A total of 14 students are involved in the programme, with four students deployed daily to two villages: two to Pematang Gadung Village and two to Sungai Besar Village.