Four Firefighters Killed Battling Blaze in Indonesia's Bromo National Park, Two More Seriously Burned
Surabaya — Four firefighters have been killed battling a wildfire in Indonesia's Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in East Java, the Associated Press reported on October 16. On October 15, a 12- member team of park personnel, community firefighters and local volunteers working in the Mentigen and Pusung Lingker areas of Probolinggo Regency was overtaken when strong winds suddenly changed fire conditions: six members were trapped by flames and smoke, three died at the scene and three suffered severe burns, one of whom later died in hospital; the rest of the team escaped unharmed. The two surviving burn victims were taken to Dr. Soetomo General Hospital in Surabaya. Because vehicles could not reach the site, rescuers carried the casualties on stretchers for roughly 2 kilometers (1.2 miles).
The fire was first reported at about 2:23 p.m. on October 13 in a resident's field outside the park near Pusung Dawa in Ngadirejo village, and spread into the park. It was reported extinguished at 11:45 a.m. on October 14, but at 9:20 a.m. on October 15 park staff at the Cemoro Lawang observation post saw smoke rising again, and the crew went back in; at about 1 p.m. the wind shifted and conditions turned.
Indonesia's Forestry Ministry confirmed the four deaths in a statement on Friday, saying a preliminary assessment indicated the fire originated outside the national park's boundaries. Police have opened an investigation, including into possible negligence.
According to AP and AFP reporting, Indonesia is battling its worst fire season in more than a decade, with haze spreading to neighbouring countries, schools shut and respiratory complaints rising; President Prabowo Subianto has approved accepting international assistance. A separate fire in August burned about 9 square kilometers (3.5 square miles) of grassland in the same national park.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：布罗莫火山日出资料照片，远景为塞梅鲁火山，非山火现场。照片：Thomas Hirsch／Wikimedia Commons（CC BY-SA 3.0）。File photo: Mount Bromo at sunrise with Mount Semeru in the background; not the fire scene. Photo: Thomas Hirsch / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).
