The fire was only 10 meters away from my house."Pekanbaru (ANTARA News) - A total of 183 people have fled their homes in Siak district, Riau province, due to thick smoke from forest and plantation fires.
"Smoke and fire are worsening. I saw smoke shroud my house. The fire was only 10 meters away from my house," evacuee Nurbasah said on Sunday.
The evacuees who are taking shelter at the Siak district seedling cultivation office are residents of Buatan Besar hamlet.
The evacuees consist of 35 children under five, 47 elementary school students and 101 adults.
Nurbasah said many residents were actually reluctant to evacuate because they want to protect their farm land and houses from fires.
"They later decided to evacuate after police picked them up on vehicles (to evacuee camp)," he said.
(Reporting by FB Anggoro/Uu.B003)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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