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View all search resultsIndonesia ramps up efforts to fight forest fires
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Firefighters and military personnel spray water on Aug. 9, 2026, in an attempt to extinguish a forest fire in Ogan Ilir regency, South Sumatra. (Reuters/Abriansyah Liberto)
W
ith more than 107,000 hectares already ravaged by land and forest fires this year, the government is scrambling to strengthen its response as a prolonged dry spell and worsening climate conditions threaten to fuel a wider fire season.
The government has designated six fire-prone provinces as priorities for fire control, namely Riau, Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan and South Kalimantan, while preparing firefighting aircraft and expanding weather modification operations to induce rainfall.
Official data and independent analysis show that fire activity this year has surpassed levels recorded during the same period in 2019, when Indonesia experienced one of its most devastating fire seasons in recent history.
The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has warned that a strong El Niño is likely to persist until the first quarter of 2027. A positive Indian Ocean Dipole, another climate pattern associated with drier conditions, is also expected to prolong drought across much of Indonesia, increasing the risk of more widespread fires.
The recent fire in Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in East Java has highlighted the growing challenge, with flames spreading toward residential areas in Dingklik Valley on Monday, seven days after the blaze began despite a National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) report that a joint team had contained the fire after it burned more than 550 hectares.
Read also: Bromo forest fire spreads further as strong winds intensify
Against the backdrop of the escalating fire threat, the Office of the Coordinating Politics and Security Minister held a coordination meeting on Monday with the Forestry Ministry, Environment Ministry, BNPB and BMKG.
