JAKARTA — A wildfire at Indonesia’s Mount Bromo National Park in East Java has been extinguished after burning about 550 hectares, but authorities have detected new fires covering roughly 20 hectares around the volcano’s caldera, officials said on Monday.
The original blaze began on Aug. 3 and had affected about 550 hectares by Aug. 9, according to Gatot Soebroto, head of the local disaster mitigation agency. Authorities subsequently declared the main fire extinguished, but new hotspots emerged in the caldera area.
More than 120 personnel, three water-bombing helicopters, drones and fire engines have been deployed to contain the new fires, Gatot said. He warned that the flames around the caldera could spread further.
The Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park, one of Indonesia’s major tourist destinations, has been closed to visitors since the evening of Aug. 8 because of the fires. No casualties have been reported.
Authorities are investigating the cause of the original blaze. Gatot said carelessness was suspected after the first flames were detected along a route used by visitors. He said officials believed someone may have lit a fire that was not fully extinguished, but the investigation had not established responsibility.
The fire comes as Indonesia enters the peak of its dry season, with authorities warning of elevated wildfire risks in several regions. The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) has said dry conditions have contributed to forest and land fires in various parts of the country.
At Mount Bromo, emergency crews have continued ground and aerial operations as authorities monitor the newly detected hotspots. The Forestry Ministry has also been preparing weather-modification efforts, but those operations have faced unfavorable atmospheric conditions.
Satyawan Pudyatmoko, director general of Natural Resources and Ecosystem Conservation at the Forestry Ministry, said the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) expected dry conditions to persist. He said the clouds needed for artificial rainfall had not formed and the operation was unlikely to be possible for at least the next 10 days.
The national park covers more than 50,000 hectares and includes Mount Bromo, an active volcano known for its large caldera and surrounding savanna.
Authorities said firefighting operations would continue around the new hotspots while access to the park remained restricted.
