South Sumatra police intensify forest fire response and prevention

Police in South Sumatra are intensifying efforts to combat and prevent forest and land fires (karhutla) across the Banyuasin and Ogan Komering Ilir (OKI) regencies.

In Banyuasin, the local police are focusing on extinguishing and cooling operations. Of the 26.5 hectares burned, 16.5 hectares have been controlled, while teams continue to work on the remaining 10 hectares. Authorities are emphasizing the cooling phase to ensure no embers remain beneath the surface, particularly in peatland areas, to prevent reignition.

In OKI, the police have launched preemptive prevention measures. Officers are visiting companies, public service offices, and schools to educate the community. These efforts include distributing information regarding the prohibition of land clearing through burning and encouraging citizens to report fire hotspots or security disturbances via the 110 emergency service.