TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Smoke hits public life in Riau
Limited visibility: Haze drops into downtown Dumai, Riau, on Friday, as a result of forest fires, usually blamed on widespread bush burning for agricultural purposes
Change Size
L
imited visibility: Haze drops into downtown Dumai, Riau, on Friday, as a result of forest fires, usually blamed on widespread bush burning for agricultural purposes. Haze was also reported to have blanketed Bengkalis regency.(Antara/Aswaddy Hamid)
Smoke from wildfire forced six elementary schools in Dumai in the province of Riau to close early on Thursday.
Dumai Health Agency head Faisal said health concerns had pushed his team to stop school activities earlier than usual after thousands of residents in Dumai had become sick from the polluted air.
The affected schools include state elementary schools SDN 13, SDN 14, SDN 17 Buluh Kasap and SDN 5 Karang Anyer.
“This morning, [the smoke] was indeed thick, which is why many students were sent home,” Faisal said on Thursday.
He said school officials were obligated to call parents to pick up their children and ensure their safety until they reach home.
To mitigate the pollution hazard, Faisal said he had instructed local health centers to distribute free face masks and advise students to avoid outdoor activities in hazy environments.
As of Thursday, the health agency had distributed about 38,000 masks to residents, particularly for kindergarten and elementary school students.
The agency has so far refrained from declaring a school holiday in response to the smoke, as air pollution standard index (ISPU) readings varied from one place to another.
As a result, many schools are still open despite some pollution.
“Because [the smoke] is carried by the wind, there is no way to be sure when the thickness [of the smoke] might increase to an ISPU level deemed unhealthy or even dangerous,” Faisal said.
He added that health problems typically occurred when the ISPU value reached the so-called red level (unhealthy) or black level (dangerous).
From Feb. 12 to 6, the health agency recorded 1,081 cases of smoke-related illnesses, mostly in patients below 20 years of age.
Meanwhile, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) announced on Thursday it had sent two water-bombing helicopters to help extinguish peatland and forest fires in Riau, particularly on Rupat Island in Bengkalis regency.
Earlier this week, the Riau administration issued an emergency status concerning the ongoing peatland and forest fires, valid from Feb. 19 to Oct. 31 this year. The decision was based on the growing number of peatland and forest fires in areas such as Dumai, Rokan Hilir and Bengkalis.
Among these areas, Rupat Island has the largest wildfire, which has been burning for a month. The acrid haze from the fires is feared to engulf neighboring country Malaysia since the island lies just off the eastern coast of Sumatra near Melaka, Malaysia.
“We have sent two helicopters following the Riau governor’s emergency declaration. We hope they can help extinguish the fire quickly,” BNPB head Lt. Gen. Doni Monardo said at the agency’s headquarters in East Jakarta.
The two aircrafts, he said further, would help a joint force consisting of Indonesian Army personnel, the Environment and Forestry Ministry’s Manggala Agni Fire Brigade, the local fire agency, regional disaster mitigation agencies (BPBD) as well as local communities extinguish fires.
Meanwhile, the police are currently investigating the cause of the wildfire that has destroyed more than 1,000 hectares of land on Rupat.
In 2015, Sumatra and Kalimantan experienced devastating fires, with more than 1 million ha of forests destroyed and dozens of people killed. A prolonged dry season caused by an especially strong El Niño effect was blamed for the fires. However, environmentalists and rights activists believe slash-and-burn land clearing for oil palm and other plantations was the real cause.
On Wednesday, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo instructed newly-appointed Riau Governor Syamsuar and Deputy Governor Edy Nasution to prioritize wildfire prevention in the region during their term in office.
According to the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite operated by Singapore, at least 30 hotspots were detected in Riau between Jan. 1 and Feb. 19. Meanwhile, two other satellites, Terra and Aqua, recorded 146 hotspots in the province in the same period. (das)
