Weather Modification Operation in Riau Seeds 3 Tonnes of Salt to Combat Forest and Land Fires

Pekanbaru — The Weather Modification Operation (OMC) in Riau Province has seeded 3 tonnes of salt to combat forest and land fires, with a focus on coastal areas, namely the districts of Siak and Bengkalis.

Head of the Emergency Division at Riau’s Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency and Fire Service (BPBD Damkar), Jim Gafur, said one sortie was carried out over each of the two districts, with one tonne of salt (NaCl) seeded per sortie.

“On the first day of the OMC, one tonne of salt was seeded, bringing the total to three tonnes seeded through the operation so far,” he said in Pekanbaru on Thursday.

He explained that the OMC in Riau is using a Cessna Grand Caravan 208B aircraft, registration PK-AKR, provided by the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB). The purpose of the operation, beyond extinguishing hotspots, is also to moisten land prone to forest and land fires.

The operation was initiated because the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) predicted that rainfall would begin to decrease in Riau. The OMC is planned to run for one week, with 8,500 kilogrammes — or 8.5 tonnes — of NaCl seeding material available.

Meanwhile, regarding the fire situation, a joint team is still conducting extinguishing and cooling operations on Rupat Island in Bengkalis District. Thin smoke is still being detected at locations that had previously burned.

“On Rupat, only thin smoke remains and cooling operations are still being carried out by the joint team,” he said.

Previously, the Riau Provincial Government declared a fire alert emergency status on 13 February. Following this, BPBD Damkar Riau immediately requested support from the central government, including water-bombing helicopters, patrols, and weather modification operations.