The five provinces are Riau, West Kalimantan, South Sumatra, Central Kalimantan and South Kalimantan.
Riau has declared an emergency status for land and forest fires from February 19 to October 31, West Kalimantan from February 12 to December 31, South Sumatra from March 8 to October 31, Central Kalimantan from May 28 to August 26 and South Kalimantan from June 1 to October 31, the ministry's deputy for social vulnerability and disaster impact, Dody Usodo, said in Jakarta on Tuesday.
In addition, Dumai municipality in Riau province, Sambas district in West Kalimantan and Ogan Komiring Ilir district in South Sumatra have also declared an emergency status for land and forest fires.
The emergency status for land and forest fires in Dumai lasted from February 13 to May 31, while the emergency status for land and forest fires in Sambas and Ogan Komiring Ilir will last from February 1 to December 31.
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To support the emergency status, the provinces have revived land and forest fire control task forces with 1,502 personnel.
"The task force personnel have been deployed to several provinces including Riau, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan," he said.
He said it was important to stay alert to land and forest fires. The National Disaster Mitigation Board (BNPB) has deployed task forces to anticipate damage from land and forest fires, and educate local residents who will most likely be affected.
The ministry recorded 28 out of 34 provinces in Indonesia are under a threat of drought with moderate to high risks this year.
The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has predicted the dry season will last from July to October this year. The dry season this year, which will peak in August will be drier than in the previous years.
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Translator: Fauzi/Suharto
Editor: Gusti Nur Cahya Aryani
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