A forest fire in Sri Aman has spread across an estimated 100 hectares, raising concerns that the blaze could worsen the haze situation in Sarawak as air quality continues to deteriorate due to transboundary smoke.
A spokesperson for the Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM) Operations Centre said the fire broke out around noon along Jalan Kejatau-Lingga in Sri Aman.
The department received an emergency call at about 1.19pm before a team from the Sri Aman Fire and Rescue Station was dispatched to the location. The seven-member team arrived at approximately 1.35pm and immediately began firefighting operations.
Firefighters used water from an open drain, while additional supplies were provided by water tankers from the Rural Water Supply Department (JBALB) and the Betong Fire and Rescue Station.
The team also created firebreaks to prevent the flames from spreading further, with an excavator from the Sri Aman Drainage and Irrigation Department (JPS) assisting efforts to contain the blaze.
By the time operations were suspended at 7.50pm, around 20 hectares of the affected area had been extinguished, while approximately 80 hectares remained uncontained.
The spokesperson said firefighting efforts would resume tomorrow due to darkness, insufficient lighting and limited water sources at the site.
Among the challenges faced by firefighters were poor communication coverage, strong winds that caused the flames to spread rapidly, limited access to open water sources and narrow roads that made it difficult for firefighting vehicles to move around.
Sri Aman was also among areas recording unhealthy air quality, with the Air Pollutant Index (API) reaching 114 as of 9pm.
