The Jakarta Post 21 Feb 14;
A number of small airports in several North Sumatra regencies have been closed or seen their operations disrupted due to haze caused by land and forest fires over the past few days.
State-run airport management company PT Angkasa Pura II reported that one of the airports affected by the haze was the Ferdinand Lumban Tobing Airport in Pinangsori, Central Tapanuli regency. The airport, located on the western coast of North Sumatra, has been closed since Wednesday.
The company’s spokesman Ali Sofyan said a regular flight route from the Kuala Namu International Airport near Medan to the Pinangsori Airport had been cancelled.
“Based on a report from Pinangsori, the airport is still closed due to poor visibility,” Sofyan said on Thursday.
Sofyan, who is also airport service manager at Kuala Namu Airport, said it remained unclear when the Pinangsori airport would resume operations.
Meanwhile, Medan branch air navigation general manager Susanto said visibility at Silangit Airport in North Tapanuli regency was only 2,000 meters. According to him, the visibility was below the normal level so wide-body planes from Kuala Namu Airport did not want to risk landing at the airport.
“Today, the Silangit Airport remains open despite the haze and so far most flight activities are running smoothly,” he said, adding that only Wings Air flights were not servicing Silangit Airport.
Information and data section head at the Medan Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency (BMKG) Mega Sirait said among the airports affected by haze in North Sumatra were Pinangsori (Central Tapanuli), Aek Godang (South Tapanuli) and Silangit (North Tapanuli). He said the haze was caused by forest fires in various areas of North Sumatra, such as Mandailing Natal, South Tapanuli, Labuhan Batu, Asahan, Dairi and Karo regencies.
In Jambi, a fire has razed peatland measuring 7 hectares, located in the community forest in Kumpe Ilir district, Muarojambi regency. The fire has yet to be extinguished as of now.
The cause of the fire remains unclear.
Muarojambi Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) head M. Zakir confirmed the fire.
“I’m still in the field with my staff members. The fire has diminished and we will continue to fight it,” he said.
Forest and peatland fires have also spread in West Tanjungjabung regency. As of now, 19 hectares are covered with forest and peatland fires, the smoke from which has covered the regency.
West Tanjungjabung Forestry Office head H. Erwin said fires had been detected in the three districts of Betara, Bram Itam and Pengabuan.
To prevent the fires from spreading further, Erwin added that his office would deploy teams of forest rangers in the fire-prone areas.
Riau schools closed due to haze
The Jakarta Post 20 Feb 14;
Authorities of three local administrations in Riau have been forced to temporarily close schools due to health concerns related to the thick and choking haze blanketing the regions.
Provincial Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) data for Pekanbaru on Thursday showed that schools in the regencies of Siak and Kampar and Pekanbaru City were closed.
“The temporary closure is only for kindergarten and elementary school students up to grade three because. The length of the closures will depend on the level of contamination,” Kampar Education Agency head Jawaher said as quoted by Antara.
Pekanbaru City and Siak regency administrations began to shut schools two weeks ago. However, in Siak sixth, ninth and 12th grade students were obliged to attend school to prepare for the upcoming national exam.
A Pekanbaru resident, Kartika, said the closure saddened her. She was afraid that her son’s education would be affected.
Data from the Pekanbaru office of the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency shows that there were 70 hotspots in Riau on Thursday, a sharp falling from 281 on Wednesday. Despite this, however, Pekanbaru and its surrounding areas were still experiencing visibility of only 800 meters. (yln)
Peat fires in Sumatra pose hazy challenge for firefighters
Devianti Faridz Channel NewsAsia 20 Feb 14;
SUMATRA: Indonesian firefighting teams are in the midst of battling forest and plantation fires across central Sumatra as part of an effort to prevent hazardous levels of haze from spreading.
As well as dangerous fire fronts, the firefighters are facing numerous logistical issues as they attempt to tackle the blazes both above and below the ground.
Last week, the area in Mandau sub-district was on fire and in just three days, the fire spread and burned 150 hectares of land which amounts to half of all the land area owned by local villagers.
The surface fire is just part of the problem. The peat fires that are raging underground are posing a bigger challenge for the firefighters.
Local villagers have come along to help the Mandau district firefighting team to extinguish the peat fire before it spreads to the residential areas.
Zulkarnaen, team leader of the Mandau Firefighters, said: "Peat fires are difficult to extinguish. We have to drench it in water because the heat spreads underground. That's the biggest challenge we face."
One of the challenges of putting out forest and plantation fires in Mandau is its remote location and lack of access to water sources. Villagers have been trying to douse the fire using their small motorbike machine washer.
Fortunately, the areas that firefighters are trying to extinguish are located near a canal.
However, for areas that are currently smouldering on, there isn't any nearby water source and firefighters admit that fires in remote areas can only be put out by heavy rainfall.
And with the current dry spell across the region, that sort of natural relief is unlikely to come any time soon.
- CNA/fa
Daily peatland fires at Indonesia’s Riau province
Devianti Faridz Channel NewsAsia 21 Feb 14;
RIAU: Indonesia's Riau province is facing dry spells, and according to local authorities, some farmers are using the dry conditions to illegally clear land, which causes plantation fires and the haze to return.
Firefighters at Duri City are facing an uphill task as they combat fires on a daily basis.
The men are part of a larger force of 60 firefighters who have been assigned to the Bengkalis regency, which is the most affected area.
Out of 70 hotspots recorded on Thursday, more than half are found in the Bengkalis regency.
Firefighter Zulkarnaen and his team said they can put out two hotspots, which is roughly a hectare of land, each day.
But he admits they cannot keep up as the fire continues to spread fast.
Zulkarnaen, who is team leader of Mandau Firefighters, said: "We try to do our best with whatever equipment and manpower we have. Obviously it's not enough, because hot spots don't come at us from one direction but from all four corners.”
Peatland fires in a certain area can reappear a few weeks later, forcing firefighters to return to the same spot to put out the underground fire and resulting smoke.
Zulkarnaen said: "Peatland fires are difficult to extinguish. It can't be put out after one douse of water. We have to drench it in water because the heat spreads underground.
That's the biggest challenge we face."
Firefighters are also trying to tap into nearby water sources to prevent the fire from spreading.
Fortunately, the areas affected by such fires are located near a canal, but for the areas that are currently smouldering on the horizon, there isn't any nearby water source.
Suiswantoro, head of the firefighting team at Riau Disaster Mitigation Agency, said: "If we are short on water supply, the alternative would be to make shallow water canals around the periphery or block canals so that it overflows. In one or two days, the water will flow into the peatlands.”
In 2013, Riau was under a haze disaster emergency programme, but since then, there has been no increase in allocation of resources.
Right now, only six firefighting vehicles and 10 portable fire extinguishers are available to cover an area eleven times the size of Singapore.
- CNA/nd
