BNBP: Ten Provinces Surrounded by Karhutla

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JAKARTA - The phenomenon of forest and land fires (karhutla) surrounded dozens of regencies/cities in ten Indonesian provinces throughout the first week of August 2026, as reported by the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB).

Head of the BNPB Disaster Data, Information, and Communication Center, Abdul Muhari, said that the affected areas stretched from Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, Maluku, to Papua.

Human negligence activities such as burning garbage, clearing land by burning, to the hot temperature of the dry season are reported to dominate the trigger for the emergence of fire points in various areas.

The BNPB Operations Control Directorate confirmed that the worst fire occurred in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS), East Java, with a total burned area of 520 hectares until Sunday (9/8) evening, which resulted in the total closure of all tourist entrances until an unspecified time.

Meanwhile, outside Java, the forest fire event had a significant impact on Banggai Regency, Central Sulawesi, covering an area of 72.4 hectares, East Halmahera in North Maluku covering an area of 23 hectares, and Tana Toraja in South Sulawesi covering an area of 15 hectares.

As reported by ANTARA, Monday, August 10, small-scale forest fires of 1 hectare to several dozen hectares were also detected and successfully extinguished by joint officers in Aceh Besar (Aceh), East Belitung (Babel), Subang (West Java), Jepara and Banyumas (Central Java), Jember (Jatim), Tojo Una-Una (Sulteng), and Sorong City (South West Papua).

According to Abdul, the joint team of officers in all affected areas is maximized to handle and mitigate the spread of the fire, including alerting ground irrigation equipment, water tank trucks, making fire barriers, and spraying the air using a waterboombing helicopter.

To prevent the escalation of this dry hydrometeorological disaster, BNPB strongly urges the public not to open land by burning, not to throw cigarette butts carelessly, and not to burn garbage in open areas.

The public is also asked to be economical in using clean water and prepare a backup water storage during the dry season which is expected to last until the end of August - September.