Siak, Riau Province, Feb 27 (Antarariau.com) - A wildfire razed peatland area measuring five hectares in Sungai Apit sub-district, Siak District, Riau Province, on Monday.
The peatland area was party planted with oilpalm trees, and another part was bushes, Adjunct Senior Commissioner Barliansyah said here, Tuesday.
The fire-affected land belonged to a private owner who is not known.
There is no well in the area so personnel of the forest fire task force has to dig a ditch to prevent the fire from spreading to wider area.
The task force members comprising military and police personnel among others, finally managed to put out the fire after working hard for almost a day.
In Riau Province, a total of 731.5 hectares of forest and plantation areas had been gutted by fires since January 14, 2018.
The Riau Administration has declared an emergency status of fores fires since February 19, and will be effective until May 31, 2018, following a significant increase in the number of wildfires.
This year, the province has allocated funds amounting to over Rp1 million to fight wildfires. ***4***
Wildfire Razes 5 Hectares of Peatland Area in Siak District
