Forest fire in Ogan Ilir, South Sumatra in September 2015 (Photo: Reuters/VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – Indonesia’s Terra and Aqua satellites have detected 27 hotspots withrisk of forest fire in seven provinces of Sumatra archipelago, according to theClimatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).
BMKG Pekanbaru leaderSlamet Riyadi said that 14 hotspots have been found in South Sumatra, five inWest Sumatra, three in Bangka Belitung, two in Jambi and one in each of NorthSumatra, Bengkulu and Riau.
According to theRegional Disaster Mitigation Agency of Riau, the province has warned localitieson forest fire risks over the year for preventive measures. The area isentering the rainy season and the number of forest fire hotspots tends to drop inSeptember.
However, the BMKG forecaststhat Indonesia suffers from drought from June to October, leading to higherrisks of forest fire.
In the recent twoyears, Indonesia has managed to reduce smog from forest fire.
Indonesian PresidentJoko Widodo called for all relevant parties to roll out early preventivemeasures against forest fire.
In 2015, Indonesia wasseriously impacted by forest fire which destroyed over 2.6 million hectares offorest and caused loss of over 20,000 billion Rupiah.
Smog from forest fire alsoaffected a large number of flights, schools and public health facilities, whileinfluencing the environment in Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines. About504,000 people suffered from respiratory diseases due to environmentalpollution caused by forest fire.-VNA
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