When Indonesia burns, these women run towards the fire
Irma smells the fire before she sees it: a column of thick, yellow-tinged smoke rising above the tree line near her small wooden home. She pulls on heavy rubber boots, checks her equipment and drives straight into the impenetrable smog emanating from wildfires devouring the peatland and ancient forests of Borneo. “I am terrified that the flames will reach residential areas. It is extremely…
In West Kalimantan, Indonesia, a group of 150 Muslim women known as Power of Mama help battle wildfires that ravage the peatlands and ancient forests of Borneo. The women, led by coordinator Irma, respond to the blazes each day during the dry season, reacting to fires that are started intentionally or otherwise by poor farming communities seeking to clear land.
The fires have grown more intense this year, exacerbated by climate anomalies and drought conditions. Irma explains that the group's mission goes beyond firefighting, as they aim to empower these women and encourage them to take on more prominent roles in society. Performing their grueling, unpaid work, the volunteers wear hard hats or motorcycle helmets adorned with their jilbabs, carrying long hosepipes to put out the fires.
The group faces numerous obstacles, such as slippery and muddy terrain during the rainy season and resistance from conservative, male-dominated communities. Irma and her fellow volunteers, including Suriati and Ratinah, continue their efforts to protect their community from the devastating effects of wildfires, which release massive amounts of greenhouse gases into the air and contribute to global warming.
Written by urgent.news from South China Morning Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
