Task Force Extinguish Fire In Pekanbaru

Pekanbaru, March 19 (Antara) - The haze disaster mitigation task force has claimed that they have successfully extinguished 173 hot spots that burned 19.766 hectares of land between the February end and mid-March. Task force deputy commander Maj. Gen. Iskandar M Sahil, in his written information received here on Wednesday, stated that the fire extinguishing work, which focused on 11 spots, was carried out by the air and ground team. The work area covers two sub-districts in Dumai City, namely Kampai and Nine Rivers, and in Bengkalis district, Rupat and Bukit Batu sub-districts that is located in Giam Siak Kecil and Bukit Batu Biosphere Reserve. Currently, the forest fire extinguishing is being carried out by burning land areas n Meranti Gulf, Pelalawan and four sub-districts in Siak and Meranti district. Reportedly, fires in Riau have reduced, where as many as 19.766 hectares of burned land have been successfully extinguished through a variety of efforts. Maj. Gen. Iskandar M Sahil noted that currently, there are only as many as 626 hectares of land that still causing smoke, but no longer being burnt. Most of the areas are located within the 279 hectares of Bengkalis district and about 162 hectares in Dumai.