Forest and Land Fires Burn 2,496 Hectares Across Papua

Forest and land fires in Papua have affected 2,496 hectares and disrupted oil and gas activity near nationally vital facilities, Indonesia’s disaster agency said.

The National Disaster Management Agency reported 35 hotspots and eight active fire points in Papua. Visibility in the affected areas ranged from five to nine kilometers.

Ground teams are monitoring and fighting the fires with equipment already sent to the region. A Super Puma helicopter is also carrying out water-bombing operations. The agency said two sorties had dropped 360,000 liters of water.

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Of course, the efforts being carried out include ground task-force teams continuing to work, monitor and extinguish the fires with equipment sent previously, as well as water bombing with one Super Puma helicopter.

The fires occurred around the operating areas of BP Berau Ltd and Genting Oil Kalsuri Ltd. They halted operations at the Tangguh LNG refinery in the Berau work area and interrupted construction of production facilities at the AKM field in the Kalsuri work area.

A helicopter from East Nusa Tenggara, previously used for post-earthquake response, has been assigned to the fires in Tofoi, Teluk Bintuni and other areas of West Papua. A Super Puma helicopter from PT Berau Ltd had also arrived and conducted two water-bombing operations, while another BNPB helicopter was due to begin operating in Papua.

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In addition, we need to convey that the helicopter from PT Berau Ltd with the Super Puma has also arrived and conducted water bombing twice. The BNPB helicopter in Berau has also arrived and will operate in Papua the next day.