Head of BNPB's Center for Data, Information, and Communication, Abdul Muhari, noted in a statement received here on Monday that two wildfire incidents affected 0.5 hectares in Lamandau District and one hectare in West Kotawaringin District, Central Kalimantan.
Muhari explained that those fires were successfully extinguished by regional disaster mitigation agency (BPBD) officers on Saturday (May 3).
“Fire suppression efforts were carried out immediately after the hotspots were detected, and both areas have now been declared extinguished,” he revealed.
Meanwhile, BNPB’s Operations Control Center (Pusdalops) recorded 38 land and forest fire incidents across Central Kalimantan from January through May 4, 2025. Moreover, 180 hotspots were identified, affecting approximately 25.46 hectares of land.
The province's Sukamara District recorded the largest burned area with 6.90 hectares, followed by North Barito District with 4.01 hectares.
According to Muhari, the causes of the wildfires are still under investigation by law enforcement authorities in each respective area.
Given the recurring trend of land and forest fires, the BNPB reminded local governments to always prepare firefighting equipment, operational vehicles, personnel, and contingency budgets to support prevention and emergency response efforts.
He emphasized that six priority provinces vulnerable to forest and land fires -- Central Kalimantan, West Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, South Sumatra, Jambi, and Riau -- must always be prepared.
“There is also one province requiring special handling, which is East Kalimantan,” he added while urging the public not to clear land through burning and to report any detected hotspots in their area.
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Translator: Prasetyo, Kenzu
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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