Indonesia: Mount Bromo wildfire grows, spurs park closure
Indonesian authorities have closed a popular national park until further notice. Strong winds and rough terrain are making it difficult for firefighters to extinguish the blaze.
Indonesia has closed Mount Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park due to a wildfire that has burned 176 hectares of land since it began on Monday. The blaze, which is one of several currently raging across the country, has mobilized hundreds of firefighters, park rangers, police, soldiers and volunteers to control the spread. Air operations, including the use of helicopters and drones, are being carried out due to challenging conditions, such as high winds and rough terrain.
The Indonesian Meteorological, Climatological and Geophysical Agency attributes the rapid spread of the flames to dry conditions and winds. The fire is believed to have started during land clearing work, although illegal fires by plantation owners and farmers are common in the region. This year's fires are particularly severe due to the current El Nino weather pattern and seasonal dry winds from Australia.
Since the beginning of 2026, more than 107,000 hectares of land have been lost to fire in Indonesia, twice the amount destroyed in 2023.
Written by urgent.news from DW English (Top Stories)'s reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
Also reported by 5 other outlets
- Indonesia: Mount Bromo wildfire grows, spurs park closure dw.com
- Strong winds fuel Bromo wildfire, blaze spreads to 520ha nst.com.my
- Indonesia closes Mount Bromo as wildfire expands rapidly dailytimes.com.pk
- World : Indonesia's Mount Bromo Closed To Tourists As Wildfire Spreads bernama.com
- Indonesia closes national park in East Java as wildfire expands aljazeera.com
