BPBD: TNBTS Forest Fire Extinguishing Use Land to Air Strategies

LUMAJANG - The Head of the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) Lumajang Isnugroho said that the forest and land fires (karhutla) in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS) area used land to air strategies so that the flames would immediately go out.

"The handling of forest fires does not rely on one method. The joint team has prepared a number of steps that are adjusted to the terrain conditions and the development of fires, both by manually extinguishing on land and in the air, such as drones and water bombing helicopters," he said in Lumajang, Sunday.

According to him, the blackout of the Argosari Village area, Senduro District in Lumajang Regency, faced a number of field conditions challenges due to the distance of the water source, the terrain to the fire point, dry vegetation material, and changes in wind direction to be a factor that needs to be taken into account in every effort to control the fire.

"The readiness is carried out by deploying personnel in turn and coordinating with related elements. This step is taken to anticipate the possibility of a change in the direction of the fire movement towards the Lumajang area," he said as quoted by Antara.

He said that one of the main obstacles in handling fires was the distance of the water intake point which was about 7 kilometers from the location of the fire and the condition made it necessary to meet the water needs for extinguishing from the ground requires support and its own strategy.

"In addition to the distance of the water source, access to the fire point has a steep terrain. This condition is a challenge for the mobilization of personnel and equipment to the fire location," he said.

He explained that another factor that needs to be anticipated is the number of dry branches and branches around the fire location, so that the material can become flammable material that has the potential to support the spread of fire, especially when the wind conditions are quite strong.

Changes in wind direction are also one of the factors that are constantly monitored by officers. Changing wind movements can affect the direction of fire spread so that handling strategies need to be adjusted to the current conditions in the field.

"Efforts from the ground are carried out through the creation of fire barriers and gepyokan using wet branches or branches. Officers also cut down trees around alternative routes to reduce the potential for fire to catch other vegetation," he said.

Meanwhile, support from the air was carried out through water bombing. On Friday (7/8), two helicopter units carried out water bombing by taking water from Ranu Regulo and a similar effort was carried out again on Saturday (8/8) so that the forest fire would soon go out.

"Monitoring is carried out continuously because the fire conditions can change according to the development of wind direction and vegetation conditions at the location," he said.

The handling was also carried out jointly by involving TNBTS Resort Ranupane, BPBD Lumajang Regency, Babinsa Argosari, Senduro Police, and the Fire Care Society from Ranupane and Argosari Villages.

Support for the preparation of water tanks was also carried out by the Ministry of Environment and Energy together with the East Java Provincial BPBD, BPBD Malang Regency, and BPBD Probolinggo Regency to be placed around the Savana area.

"Based on the assessment of BPBD Lumajang, the cause of the fire is still being identified by authorized officers. Meanwhile, the area burned is still being assessed and counted by TNBTS," said Isnugroho.

BPBD Lumajang appeals to residents, visitors, and tourism service providers to comply with the provisions for closing the area and not to carry out activities that have the potential to trigger fires.

The public is also expected to immediately report if they find a fire point or conditions that have the potential to cause a fire so that officers can handle it as early as possible.

"Through preparedness from the beginning, continuous monitoring, support for various extinguishing methods, and cross-element collaboration, efforts to control the forest fire continue to be carried out by prioritizing the safety of personnel, the community, and the protection of the TNBTS conservation area," he said.