Forest Fire Threatens Mount Arjuno-Welirang Ecosystem
- 26 Agt 2026 15:10 WIB
- Voice of Indonesia
Poin Utama
- A forest fire in the Mount Arjuno-Welirang conservation area in Pasuruan, East Java, has burned 146.85 hectares.
- The fire threatens the area’s endemic vegetation, biodiversity, and environmental balance, with mountain casuarina, wild grass, and shrubs among the affected vegetation.
RRI.CO.ID, Pasuruan - A forest fire in the Mount Arjuno-Welirang area of Pasuruan Regency is increasingly threatening the conservation of East Java’s endemic vegetation ecosystem. The blaze has scorched 146.85 hectares of land, primarily covered by mountain casuarina trees, wild grass, and shrubs, endangering biodiversity and the environmental balance of the conservation area.
Efforts to extinguish the forest fire in the Mount Arjuno-Welirang area are continuing through ground operations conducted by a joint response team. Meanwhile, the East Java Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) has deployed a PK-DAP helicopter with a capacity of 1,000 liters to suppress hotspots in steep terrain that is difficult to reach by land.
“The fire had actually been extinguished on the 21st, but it reignited because of weather conditions. Since then, we have been carrying out water-bombing operations up to today,” said Head of the East Java BPBD, Gatot Soebroto, in a statement received in Pasuruan, East Java, on Tuesday, August 25, 2026.
As of Tuesday, eight water-bombing sorties had been conducted, dropping a total of 8,000 liters of water on affected areas. As reported by Antara, the aerial operation focused on two fire hotspots below the summit of Mount Arjuno that could not be accessed by ground crews.
He said joint personnel were also monitoring conditions in the affected area directly from the helicopter to identify the locations of fire hotspots and support faster handling of forest and land fires in the area.
Meanwhile, around 30 members of the joint team were conducting ground-based firefighting operations via the Sumber Brantas hiking route in Batu City and the Tretes route in Pasuruan Regency. Most of the burned vegetation consisted of mountain casuarina trees, wild grass, and shrubs.
Gatot praised the cross-agency cooperation involving BPBD Pasuruan, the Indonesian Military (TNI), the National Police (Polri), Manggala Agni Fire Brigade, and the East Java Forestry Agency in responding to the fire. All personnel involved remain on full alert at the Kaliandra Forest and Land Fire Command Post in Prigen Subdistrict, Pasuruan Regency.
“Because weather conditions on Arjuno can change quickly, water-bombing operations cannot always be carried out. However, we hope today’s operation can be maximized so that the affected area can be extinguished soon,” said Gatot. ***
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