Hanoi (VNA) – Indonesian authorities on August 7 battled to contain a wildfire that had swept through Mount Bromo National Park on Java island, destroying more than 120 hectares as the country braces itself for an extreme El Nino-fuelled dry season, reported by Channel News Asia.
The fire started on August 3 near Mount Bromo in East Java, one of Indonesia's most visited tourist destinations but now closed until further notice.
Local authorities deployed two water-bombing helicopters against the flames that have razed at least 127 hectares of the national park land to date, said fire official Bambang Setyo Antoko.
The destroyed area is equivalent to about 180 soccer fields.
He also noted that firefighting efforts currently depend heavily on wind conditions.
Indonesia's BMKG weather agency has warned that the 2026 dry season will be more intense and prolonged than usual, with a higher risk of wildfires and drought due in part to El Nino.
According to the Ministry of Forestry, more than 107,000 hectares of land burned in Indonesia between January and June this year, more than double the area destroyed in forest fires in 2023./.
Indonesia takes drastic measures to respond to strong El Niño
Under its response plan for agriculture and forestry, Indonesia is stepping up forest and peatland fire prevention and firefighting, deploying weather modification technology, improving irrigation systems, putting boreholes into operation, distributing drought-resistant crop varieties, and expanding agricultural insurance. These measures aim to mitigate the impact of drought on rice, palm oil and coffee production.
