A wildfire that burned around 550 hectares (1,360 acres) of Indonesia’s Mount Bromo National Park in East Java has been extinguished, but authorities have discovered new hotspots near the volcano’s caldera.
Local disaster mitigation agency chief Gatot Soebroto told Reuters that the original blaze, which started on August 3, had been fully put out by Sunday after spreading across approximately 550 hectares.
However, authorities later detected new fires covering about 20 hectares in areas surrounding the caldera.
Gatot warned that the fire near the caldera could spread further, prompting authorities to step up firefighting efforts in the area.
More than 120 personnel, three water-bombing helicopters, drones and several fire engines have been deployed to contain the latest hotspots.
Mount Bromo is an active volcano and one of Indonesia’s popular tourist destinations, known for its vast “sand sea” surrounding the caldera. The national park itself spans more than 50,000 hectares.
Authorities are still investigating the cause of the wildfire, although officials suspect it may have resulted from human carelessness.
Gatot said the initial fire was believed to have started after someone lit a fire along a route used by visitors and failed to extinguish it completely.
Mount Bromo National Park has been closed since Saturday evening as a precaution while firefighting operations continue. No casualties have been reported.
