Forest and land fires (karhutla) once again hit the hilly area of Gunung Putri in Sawangan Village, Ajibarang District, Banyumas Regency on Thursday (30/7) night. Thanks to the alertness and mutual cooperation of local residents, the flames burning the land owned by Perhutani were successfully subdued before spreading further.
Head of the Emergency and Logistics Division of the Banyumas Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), Abdul Ladjis, confirmed that the area affected by the fire reached approximately four hectares. Extinguishment efforts by officers were temporarily hindered by the steep geographical conditions of the hills, which could only be accessed on foot.
Before the BPBD Quick Response Team (TRC) arrived at the high-altitude location, villagers had moved quickly to isolate and extinguish the fire independently. According to a local resident, Faressa, the fire hotspots began to grow larger around Maghrib (sunset) time and were only completely extinguished at around 20:30 WIB.
Until now, the exact cause of the fire is still under investigation by the authorities. As a precautionary measure in the midst of the dry season, BPBD Banyumas urges the public not to burn garbage or clear land by burning to prevent similar incidents from recurring.
This forest fire event was the second incident in the Ajibarang area on the same day. Earlier in the afternoon, at around 14:02 WIB, a fire had also hit Plot 32 of Perhutani West Banyumas in Tipar Kidul Village, but was successfully resolved through synergy between joint officers, Perhutani, and local residents.
