75 Hectares Of City Forests In Central Bangka Burned

75 hectares of urban forest and residents' gardens in Koba District, Central Bangka caught fire, Thursday (5/10) (ANTARA/Ahmadi)

CENTRAL BANGKA - The Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) of Central Bangka Regency, Bangka Belitung Islands, noted that 75 hectares of urban forest and residents' gardens in Koba were burned as a result of the dry season.

"The fire that occurred from Tuesday (3/10) to Thursday (5/10) afternoon, has damaged 75 hectares of urban forest and residents' gardens," said Head of BPBD Central Bangka Yudhi Sabara, quoted by ANTARA, Thursday, October 5.

BPBD Central Bangka noted that 60 hectares of urban forest burned in the By Pass area or lane two road to the local regent's office and 15 hectares were residents' gardens around the city forest.

"We deployed as many as eight fire engines (damkar) to extinguish fires in urban forest areas and deploy team personnel, because the fire has begun to spread," he said.

For three days, he said, firefighters struggled in the field to extinguish the fire because it was feared that it would spread to the point of burning the residents' villages.

"The condition of this city's forest is indeed a forest that is speeding up, the level of difficulty in extinguishing the fire is indeed very high, so it requires a lot of water," he said.

The fire also triggered a thick smog that enveloped parts of the area in Koba District.

"The thick smoke is unavoidable, so we urge residents to be more careful crossing the By Pass area and it is recommended to wear masks," he said.

The forest fire also forced the Tahfiz Elementary School and Tahfis Middle School, which are not far from the urban forest area, to repatriate students early from Wednesday (4/10) to Thursday (5/10) to avoid smog.

Even SD and SMP IT will make a decision to send students on Friday (6/10), if thick smog still envelopes the school's environment.