Indonesia Battles Wildfires as Mount Bromo Park Blaze Spreads

Indonesia has stepped up efforts to contain a series of wildfires across the archipelago, with the largest blaze burning through a popular national park in East Java and separate fires affecting peatlands in Sumatra. The operations, which began in earnest on Monday, involve helicopters, hundreds of firefighters, and disaster response personnel.

The most significant fire is located in Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park, where roughly 743 hectares have been scorched. The flames have consumed dry grassland, vegetation, and protected edelweiss flowers, and have reached the Penanjakan area, a well-known viewpoint for tourists visiting Mount Bromo. No injuries or evacuations have been reported, but the park has been closed to visitors until further notice.

To fight the blaze, authorities have deployed at least three helicopters for water-bombing missions over hard-to-reach hot spots. Ground crews are also conducting manual firefighting, cooling operations, patrols, and building firebreaks to halt the fire's advance. Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni visited the park on Sunday and urged the public to avoid activities that could spark new fires, such as discarding cigarette butts or clearing land by burning.

The situation is compounded by an unusually dry season. Indonesia's Forestry Ministry warned on Sunday that dry weather and strengthening El Nino conditions raise the risk of more forest and land fires during the peak dry season. The Meteorological, Climatological, and Geophysical Agency has identified August and September as the most critical months, as dry vegetation and strong winds can cause fires to spread rapidly.

Elsewhere, more than 50 hectares of peatland have burned in Jambi province on Sumatra island, producing choking haze in some areas and raising concerns about air quality. The largest of these fires is in the village of Sungai Gelam in the Muaro Jambi district, where dozens of hectares of oil palm plantations have been destroyed. That blaze has been burning since Wednesday.

Around 300 firefighters and disaster personnel are battling the Sumatra fire, but deep peat soil, limited water supplies, difficult access, and strong winds have complicated the effort, even with three helicopters conducting aerial operations. Forest fires on Sumatra and Borneo islands are common during dry spells, often started illegally by plantation owners or traditional farmers to clear land. Such burns periodically blanket parts of Southeast Asia in hazardous haze.