Indonesian Police and Military Battle Forest Fires in West Kalimantan

Indonesian police and military personnel battled wildfires in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, on Thursday, August 16, as the blaze threatened forests and plantations in the province and sent smoke haze to towns and villages.

The firefighting efforts were led by West Kalimantan police chief Didi Haryono and the 12th/Tanjungpura Military District commander Major General Achmad Supriyadi.

On August 16, the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) detected 1,075 hot spots in West Kalimantan – the highest number in Indonesia.

Forest fires also raged in different parts of Sumatra island, with 121 hot spots detected in Riau province on August 16. Credit: West Kalimantan Regional Police/Polda Kalbar via Storyful