20150707 Indonesia Fires in Jambi continue to expand
Indonesia Jul 07 2015 “Forest”
Dead : dead 0 or unknown Burnout : 0 or unknown Injured : injured 0 or unknown
Fires in Jambi continue to expand
Updated: 2015-07-07 14:31
A Jambi environmental activist has said the Pematang Damar forest, which is an orchid conservation area, caught fire in the past week threatening various endangered species of orchids.
Local conservation initiative Gerakan Muarojambi Bersepakat (GMB) deputy chairman Adi Ismanto said land and forest fires in Jambi had continued to expand, burning around 10 hectares of areas in the Pematang Damar forest so far.
“The forest is still ablaze. Fires have flared up in several points,” said Adi on Tuesday.
He said the Pematang Damar forest was first set ablaze last week with small fires on its periphery. “The fires have spread inside the forest,” said the activist.
Adi said the fires were from several areas, including Bakung, Jambi Tulo and Mudung, which encircled the forest.
“The Pematang Damar forest is encircled. It will be completely destroyed in the next several days unless there is a concerted effort to extinguish the fires,” he said.
Meanwhile, Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) Jambi weather forecaster Dian Anggaraini said the number of fire spots monitored from Aqua and Terra satellites reached 29 on Tuesday. Muarojambi regency had 14 fire spots, followed by East Tanjungjabung (6), Tebo (5) and Sarolangun (4).
She said local residents should stay alert for haze, as currently winds were moving from southern and southeastern areas to Jambi and Sumatra island overall.
Web Source: The Jakarta Post
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/07/07/fires-jambi-continue-expand.html