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Bromo fire expands to 176 hectares; helicopters deployed for water bombing
🇮🇩 Indonesia /Conflict & Security

Bromo fire expands to 176 hectares; helicopters deployed for water bombing

From CNN Indonesia · () Indonesian

Translated from Indonesian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Ongoing story
  • The forest and land fire in Bromo, East Java, has expanded to cover approximately 176.20 hectares.
  • Efforts to extinguish the blaze are ongoing, involving helicopters for water bombing and ground teams.
  • The national park has closed parts of the tourist area, and access from Malang and Lumajang regencies remains temporarily shut.

A forest and land fire in the Bromo region of Probolinggo, East Java, continues to spread, with the latest data indicating the burned area has reached approximately 176.20 hectares. Officials state that this figure is likely to increase as firefighting operations are still underway in several locations.

The area burned is approximately 176.20 hectares, the data is developing.

— Satriyo NursenoHead of Emergency and Logistics Division of the East Java Provincial BPBD, reporting the latest figures on the fire.

The fire, which began on Monday around 5:00 PM Western Indonesian Time, has led the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park authorities to close sections of the popular tourist destination indefinitely. Entry points from Malang and Lumajang regencies are also temporarily closed.

The fire points are in the eastern area, approaching Bukit B29. Meanwhile, the fire points in the northern area of Sariwani Village, Sukapura District, and at Bukit Jantur have been extinguished, although smoke is still visible.

— Satriyo NursenoDescribing the current locations of the fire and extinguished areas.

Firefighting efforts are being supported by a BNPB helicopter equipped for water bombing, which conducted multiple sorties on Friday, dropping a total of 4,000 liters of water. Ground teams from the East Java Provincial Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) and joint forces are also working from both the top and bottom of the caldera slopes, utilizing fire trucks, water tank trucks, and a drone for water spraying.

Helicopter PK-DBM from BNPB has carried out water bombing operations one sortie with four rotations with a total of 4,000 liters of water.

— Satriyo NursenoDetailing the aerial firefighting efforts.

Challenges in combating the blaze include the steep terrain of the Bromo Caldera and strong winds, which complicate ground operations. The vegetation affected includes various types of mountain pine, shrubs, and acacia. Fortunately, there have been no reports of casualties resulting from the fire. Governor of East Java, Khofifah Indar Parawansa, has personally visited the site to oversee the handling of the disaster.

Helicopter HU-4205 and Helicopter HU-4206 returned to the command post due to the bracket being too large and obstacles in the water retrieval area at Ranu Pani and Ranu Regulo being too high.

— Satriyo NursenoExplaining technical issues that hampered other helicopters.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by CNN Indonesia in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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