Battle in Wadon Crater: When 150 Souls Bet Against the Amuk Fire of Mount Gede

Joint officers are trying to put out a fire that burned land in the Wadon Gunung Gede crater, Cianjur Regency, West Java, with makeshift tools where the fire burned more than 6 hectares, Sunday (9/8/2026). (Antara - Ahmad Fikri)

Cianjur - Thick smoke billowed high above Wadon Crater, cutting off the beauty of the panorama of the peak of Mount Gede Pangrango. In the midst of the piercing gusts of wind and the stinging heat, the sound of the friction of the burning dry vegetation was heard. Entering the second day, more than six hectares of green land is now racing with the flames.

In the steep and isolated terrain, about 150 people - a combination of TNI/Polri personnel, Damkar, BPBD Cianjur, and dozens of volunteers - do not back down. Without sophisticated weapons, they bet on manpower to penetrate the lush mountain slopes with only the basic equipment to extinguish the red hero.

"Our biggest obstacle is the location which is very difficult to reach, plus the many dry trees which are so flammable," said spokesman for the Mount Gede Pangrango National Park (TNGGP), Ade Bagja, Sunday.

Friends of the Wind, Manually Extinguishing Fires

Putting out a fire in a mountain crater area is not easy. The steep rocky field does not allow the fire truck to roar in. The only remaining way is the manual method: pat the tongue of fire with a wet branch, pour water from emergency bags, to make a fire barrier so that the fire does not continue to spread.

However, nature seems to give a multiple challenge. From morning to evening, the wind blows so hard. A little tongue of fire that is hit by a gust of wind quickly jumps, grabbing other grass.

"Strong winds and makeshift tools make the fire quickly spread. But about 150 officers and volunteers are still struggling so that the fire does not spread further," said Ombing, a Cianjur BPBD officer who was on the front line of the blackout.

When Nature Becomes a Trigger

Behind the Wadon Crater smoke, the initial search results showed that this tragedy was purely triggered by a natural phenomenon. Before the first smoke cloud was seen, there was no trace or human activity in the vulnerable area.

The extreme dry season cuts the water content in the vegetation around the crater. The increase in natural hot temperatures coming out of the stomach of the Wadon Crater is suspected to be the initial spark that ignited the grass and dry trees around it.

Although the initial analysis pointed to weather and natural factors, the TNGGP and the joint team confirmed that their main focus at this time was to put out the fire completely. For the 150 fighters on the crater, there is no word of rest until Mount Gede is calm and beautiful as ever.