JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia intensified its ground and aerial firefighting operations on Monday as huge blazes in central and western regions scorched wide areas of forests and peatland, creating a choking haze that blanketed cities and crossed borders.Emergency services have been battling fires driven by an intensifying El Nino pattern and a prolonged dry season, generating dense smoke that crossed into Malaysia and Brunei, according to the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB).Fires remained active in several regions on Monday, according to the agency, while large-scale suppression efforts continue in fire-prone provinces including West, Central and South Kalimantan on Borneo island and in Riau, South Sumatra and Jambi on Sumatra island. The fires are part of a broader surge in wildfire activity across Indonesia this year.
Drought, strong winds and dry vegetation have complicated efforts to contain the fires, the BNPB said in a statement. Some hot spots remained inaccessible to more than 24,000 ground firefighters who were deployed on Sumatra and Borneo, prompting local officials to request additional water-bombing support.
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Prabowo visits fire-affected areasAfter visiting areas devastated by forest and peatland fires in Central Kalimantan on Saturday, President Prabowo Subianto traveled to fire-affected Riau and its neighboring province of South Sumatra on Monday, where more than 36,000 hectares (89,000 acres) have burned in 10 provinces, to encourage authorities to get the haze cloud under control.
