Satelites Detect Five Hotspots In Riau

Pekanbaru, Riau, Aug 21 (Antara) - The Terra and Aqua MODIS Satellites detected five hotspots in Riau, on Wednesday, at 6 p.m. local time. Of the five detected hotspots, four are in Pelalawan District and one in Rokan Hilir District, the Riau Disaster Mitigation Office stated here on Thursday. Meanwhile, the US-owned NOAA-18 Satellite being operated in Singapore, on the same day, recorded two hotspots across Sumatra Island but none in Riau Province. The satellite shows a location as a hotspot when the air temperature is higher than 40 degrees Celsius, which is suspected to be a forest or plantation fire. During 2014, several forest and plantation fires razed some 25 thousand hectares of forest areas and produced haze that enveloped parts of Sumatra. Riau Governor Annas Maamun has urged district heads and mayors in the province to prevent forest fires from occurring. The Riau provincial police have detained 189 suspects for their alleged role in deliberately setting off forest fires. "The number of suspects can increase as the police team is still looking for some people suspected of have set off the forest fires," spokesman of the Riau Police Adjunct Senior Commissioner Guntur Aryo Tejo remarked.