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Police hunt cigarette tosser who allegedly caused fire in Komodo National Park
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The savanna vegetation on Gili Lawa Darat in Komodo National Park, East Nusa Tenggara, was reportedly set on fire by a lit cigarette on Aug. 1. (Tribunnews.com/-)
P
olice in West Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara, have questioned 11 people over a blaze that burned 10 hectares of savanna vegetation on Gili Lawa Darat island in Komodo National Park.
"They included ship crew, tour guides and Komodo National Park officers, among others,” East Nusa Tenggara police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Jules Abraham Abast said on Saturday night, adding that the cause of the blaze was still unknown, as reported by kompas.com.
Gili Lawa Darat had been closed until further notice, the head of the Komodo National Park Budhy Kurniawan said. Budhy urged all tourists to follow the park’s rules and ethics, including not smoking cigarettes or lighting fires.
The fire was allegedly caused by a lit cigarette tossed by a visitor on the island’s summit, Budhy explained. The visitor was travelling on a tour ship called Indonesia Juara (Indonesia the Champion).
Indonesia Juara’s management confirmed that its staff had been questioned. The management said the police were investigating whether its staff members had shown negligence in ensuring all visitors followed the rules during the tour.
"If they are found to be responsible, we will give them harsh sanctions; even fire them if necessary," the management said on Friday as quoted by tempo.co.
The fire was reported at 8 p.m. local time on Wednesday. Staff members from the Padar, Loh Sebita and Labuan Bajo resorts immediately went to the location to put out the fire. The blaze was extinguished at around 3 a.m. local time on Thursday. (stu/evi)
